How China became a leader in solar PV: An innovation system analysis

Abstract

In this paper we focus on understanding the rapid rise of the Chinese PV industry and its profound impact on the global PV industry. We investigate how it is possible that a nation that is still focusing on catching up in terms of industry, innovation and technology has been able to bring manufacturers from leading industrialized nations to their knees. This paper applies the framework of the Technological Innovation System (TIS), and also takes the context into account, in terms of the Chinese national innovation system (NIS) and the global PV TIS. It concludes that the rise of the Chinese PV TIS can be explained by the interaction of three context factors (the change in Chinese institutions, technology transfer, and the large European market) and specific PV TIS dynamics. The study empirically shows the importance of extending the national TIS studies by including the influences of context factors.