Chinese module manufacturer LONGi Solar has announced its annual financial results for 2018. The figures show that the revenue from operations was ¥21.9 billion ($197 million), an increase of approximately 34.38% over the previous year, while the net profit attributed to shareholders of the listed companies for the year was ¥2.558 billion ($2.3 million).

The company also announced that the annual shipment of solar cells and modules reached 7.07 GW, a 50% increase over the previous year.

While looking to promote its brand internationally, the company claims to have achieved growth in shipments in the U.S., Europe, India, Latin America, Japan, Australia, and Africa.

By the end of 2018, the production capacity of LONGi’s monocrystalline silicon ingot and wafer had reached 28 GW. The company’s Chuzhou factory, a 5 GW module manufacturing facility in Anhui Province, became operational in March 2019.

LONGi also released its guidance for capacity increase. By the end of 2019, the company expects the capacity of ingot/wafer at 36 GW, cell capacity to be 10 GW and module capacity to come in at 16 GW. By the end of 2020, the capacity of ingot/wafer is forecasted to be 50 GW, while cell capacity is estimated to reach 15 GW followed by module capacity at 25 GW. By the end of 2021, the company expects the capacity of ingot/wafer to reach 65 GW, the capacity of cell at 20 GW and the capacity of module to total 30 GW.

LONGi stressed that sustained R&D investment was instrumental in the company developing new technologies and products. The company obtained 526 patents in 2018 alone.

In January 2018, LONGI’s representative, in an interview with Mercom, stated that anti-dumping duty would benefit local manufactures but it would be detrimental to India’s solar development in the long run.

Image Credit: LONGi Solar