Photo: Courtesy of the LONGi Green Energy Technology Co., Ltd.

From June 25th to 27th, the 15th Annual Meeting of the New Champions, also known as the Summer Davos, was held in Dalian, Northeast China’s Liaoning Province. Chinese Premier Li Qiang attended the opening ceremony and delivered a speech. 

Xie Tian, the General Manager of LONGi's Strategic Management Center, was invited to participate in the forum and share views at the closed-door meetings "Advancing Asia’s Value Chain Decarbonization" and "Scenario Planning: Reimagining Value Chains for 2040."

The theme of this year’s forum, "Next Frontiers for Growth," brought together more than 1,600 high-level leaders from political, business, social and international organizational spheres, as well as distinguished entrepreneurs, innovators and experts. Asia continues to drive two-thirds of global economic growth, and the leaders gathered here will find collaborative opportunities to foster and sustain economic momentum.

During the COP28 last year, one of the most notable achievements was the target of tripling global renewable energy capacity by 2030. As the production and installation of renewable energy grow rapidly, the environmental footprint of renewable energy companies' value chains and accelerated emission reductions become increasingly important. Sustainable development goals and technological advancements are key drivers in reshaping the structure and function of the value chain.

At the meeting, Xie emphasized that as a leading global solar technology company, LONGi acknowledges its responsibility to reduce carbon emissions. Since 2020, LONGi has joined the RE100, EP100, EV100 initiatives, and the Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi), gradually establishing a greenhouse gas emission accounting system for the entire value chain. The company has set emission reduction targets that align with industry trends and its operational status. Last year, LONGi received certification from the SBTi, becoming the first Chinese photovoltaic company to receive official target verification from the initiative.

Building a green and low-carbon value chain

LONGi focuses on technological cooperation and innovation, constructing a collaborative operation system across the entire value chain, and promoting high-quality development within the industry. As early as 2021, LONGi initiated a carbon reduction initiative with its suppliers and has continued to advance and deepen these efforts annually, gradually increasing requirements and standards. Additionally, the company empowers upstream suppliers, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, fulfilling its responsibility as an industry leader.

To fulfill such a role, LONGi systematically integrates carbon reduction goals, promoting green and low-carbon actions throughout the value chain from its own SBTi targets and the realization of green, low-carbon products, steadily forming a sustainable procurement system.

Climate change poses increasingly evident risks to ecosystems and people's livelihoods. Although progress has been made in the transition to renewable energy, more concrete actions and close cooperation are still needed to achieve the climate goals of countries around the world. 

Moreover, Xie believes that renewable energy companies creating their own green, zero-carbon, and sustainable value chains will also be crucial to achieving lasting climate impact.

Digital transformation and intelligent manufacturing

In December last year, LONGi's Jiaxing Production Base was recognized as the world’s first “Lighthouse Factory” in the PV industry. This highlights LONGi’s achievements in intelligent manufacturing and digitalization, setting a global benchmark for advanced manufacturing. Through multiple smart technologies, the factory has reduced unit manufacturing costs by 28%, decreased yield loss by 43%, shortened production delivery cycles by 84%, and lowered unit energy consumption by 20% within a year.

On May 23rd of this year, LONGi officially launched the "Lighthouse Project" aimed at extending the agile manufacturing model of the Jiaxing Lighthouse Factory to more production bases, enhancing comprehensive production capabilities and setting a digital and intelligent benchmark for the PV industry.

Addressing global challenges

As a leading global solar technology company, LONGi is dedicated to being an advocate, practitioner, and leader in sustainable development in the clean energy field. Through continuous technological research and innovation, the company aims to improve photovoltaic cell conversion efficiency, reduce the levelized cost of solar energy, and support the global energy transition and carbon neutrality goals. 

Since 2012, LONGi's cumulative shipments of photovoltaic silicon wafers have exceeded 414.24 GW, with a cumulative power generation of over 17.361 billion kWh of green electricity by the end of 2023, equivalent to reducing 812 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions. 

Under the guidance of dual carbon goals, zero-carbon electricity, represented by solar PV, is receiving unprecedented global attention. Addressing climate change, promoting green transformation, fulfilling social responsibilities, advocating for energy equity, and enhancing biodiversity protection have become the international consensus. These efforts continue to drive global photovoltaic practitioners to contribute to building a clean and beautiful world. LONGi has integrated environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles and standards into its corporate strategy and will continue to deepen research and improve ESG practices, contributing to the standardization of ESG work in China and around the world.

About LONGi

Founded in 2000, LONGi is committed to being the world’s leading solar technology company, focusing on customer-driven value creation for full scenario energy transformation.

Under its mission of “making the best of solar energy to build a green world,” LONGi has dedicated itself to technology innovation and established five business sectors, covering mono silicon wafers cells and modules, commercial & industrial distributed solar solutions, green energy solutions and hydrogen equipment. The company has honed its capabilities to provide green energy and has more recently, also embraced green hydrogen products and solutions to support global zero carbon development. Website: www.longi.com