TSLA, CSIQ Stocks In Focus As China Tightens Solar Manufacturing Technology Exports

China's Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Science and Technology on Friday proposed adding 12 photovoltaic technologies to the country's export-control list.

• Under the proposal, China would prohibit exports of certain technologies used to manufacture perovskite and tandem solar cells, as well as selected thin-silicon wafer and fluidized-bed polysilicon technologies.
• Other advanced manufacturing technologies, including TOPCon, HJT and back-contact technologies, would face restrictions rather than an outright export ban.
• China's Commerce Ministry highlighted national security concerns, pointing to the growing use of photovoltaic technologies in aerospace, national defense, unmanned equipment and high-security infrastructure.

Shares of Tesla Inc. (TSLA) and Canadian Solar Inc. (CSIQ) are in focus after China proposed tighter controls on the export of technologies used to manufacture solar panels and cells.

China's Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Science and Technology on Friday proposed adding 12 photovoltaic technologies to the country's export-control list, including technologies related to polysilicon, silicon wafers and advanced solar-cell manufacturing, per a report by Reuters.

Tesla shares closed 2% lower on Friday, while Canadian Solar shares fell more than 7%.

China Targets Key Solar Manufacturing Technologies

Under the proposal, China would prohibit exports of certain technologies used to manufacture perovskite and tandem solar cells, as well as selected thin-silicon wafer and fluidized-bed polysilicon technologies. Other advanced manufacturing technologies, including TOPCon, HJT and back-contact technologies, would face restrictions rather than an outright export ban.

The measures are part of a broader revision of China's Catalogue of Technologies Prohibited and Restricted from Export. Beijing said the photovoltaic additions cover technologies used in polysilicon manufacturing, silicon-wafer manufacturing and solar-cell manufacturing.

China's Commerce Ministry said the move is aimed at addressing national security concerns, pointing to the growing use of photovoltaic technologies in areas including aerospace, national defense, unmanned equipment and high-security infrastructure.

“The national security risks that may be caused by the export of solar technology have been constantly rising. It is necessary to implement timely and appropriate supervision,” the ministry said.

At the same time, Beijing stressed that the controls are intended to be narrowly targeted. The ministry said technologies that do not meet the specified control thresholds would remain freely exportable and that products manufactured using controlled technologies are not themselves within the scope of the proposed rules.

"The scope of technologies listed in this announcement is limited; other technologies that do not meet the control indicators can still be freely exported," the ministry said.

TSLA In Talks With Chinese Firms For Solar Equipment

According to a Reuters report from March, Tesla was in talks with Chinese firms to procure about $2.9 billion worth of solar manufacturing equipment, including equipment from Suzhou Maxwell Technologies, Shenzhen S.C New Energy Technology and Laplace Renewable Energy Technology.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk outlined his vision at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January this year, with the EV giant planning to add 100 GW of solar manufacturing capacity in the U.S. by 2028.

CSIQ’s HJT Expansion In US Faces New Question

Canadian Solar could be particularly relevant because its U.S. manufacturing expansion relies on heterojunction technology, or HJT, one of the advanced solar-cell technologies specifically identified for export restrictions under China's proposal.

Canadian Solar's subsidiary CS PowerTech officially opened the first phase of its HJT solar-cell factory in Jeffersonville, Indiana, earlier this year. The first phase has a total capacity of 2.1 GW, while a second phase is expected to bring total U.S. cell capacity to 6.3 GW in the first half of 2027.

The company has described the Indiana facility as the first U.S. plant designed to produce advanced HJT bifacial N-type solar cells. Together with its Texas module facility, the expansion is intended to create a more localized U.S. solar manufacturing supply chain.

"We are executing on a multidimensional solar technology roadmap, spanning advanced cell innovations to next-generation applications," Canadian Solar CEO Colin Parkin said in August. "In the near to midterm, U.S. manufacturing remains at the forefront of our strategy."

However, the proposal does not mean that Canadian Solar's HJT factory is automatically blocked. China's Commerce Ministry emphasized that the controls have specific technical indicators and that only technologies and key equipment meeting those thresholds would be subject to the proposed restrictions.

What Retail Investors Think About TSLA Stock

Retail sentiment on Stocktwits around Tesla trended in the ‘bullish’ territory at the time of writing.

TSLA stock is down 21% year-to-date, while CSIQ stock is down 59%. The S&P 500 ETF (SPY) is up 16% over the past 12 months, while the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) is up 18%.

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