In 2023, driven by the global "carbon neutrality" wave and the transformation of China's domestic energy structure, the country's PV industry continued its rapid growth trajectory. As the "skeleton" ensuring the stable operation of PV power plants, the PV mounting structure industry saw significant changes across multiple dimensions, including technological iteration, market application, policy standards, and corporate competition. With surging shipments of tracking systems, large-scale application of new technologies like flexible mounting structures, and the accelerated pace of Chinese PV mounting companies "going global," PV mounting structures are evolving from traditional auxiliary equipment into a key component for improving power plant efficiency and yield.

I. Market Overview: Global Tracking Systems Surge, China Takes a Different Path

In 2023, the global market for PV trackers continued its strong growth. According to Wood Mackenzie's Global PV Tracker Market Share Report 2024, global tracker shipments grew 28% year-on-year to reach 92 GWdc in 2023, with the top 10 suppliers accounting for 90% of the global market share. U.S. manufacturers Nextracker and Array Technologies continued to lead the global market for the ninth consecutive year, ranking first and second respectively. Another U.S. company, GameChange Solar, entered the global top three for the first time with an annual growth rate of 55%. As the world's largest tracker market, the U.S. saw shipments exceed 37 GW in 2023, a 10% increase year-on-year, significantly driven by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) which boosted large-scale project development.

In Europe, Spain dominated, accounting for over 50% of European demand. Spanish manufacturer PV Hardware (PVH) ranked first in Europe for shipments, with two other Spanish manufacturers, Soltec and Axial, entering the global top ten. Meanwhile, Chinese companies also made notable progress in the international market. Arctech and Trina Tracker ranked fifth and sixth globally, respectively, driven by business expansion in the Middle East, Central Asia, and Latin America.

It is worth noting that despite China's centralized PV installed capacity exceeding 140 GW in 2023, the domestic market size for trackers fell to 4.3 GW. The primary reason is that Chinese developers saw a surge in demand for fixed-tilt products, prioritizing lower installation costs in the current domestic market. This "cool inside, hot outside" market dynamic has further accelerated the strategic "going global" transformation of Chinese PV mounting structure companies.

II. Technological Innovation: From "Passive Support" to "Active Enhancement"

In 2023, technological innovation in the PV mounting structure sector accelerated rapidly. Multiple technical routes, including trackers, flexible mounting systems, and high-efficiency mounting solutions, flourished. PV mounting structures are evolving from mere "support structures" into a core component for enhancing power plant efficiency and yield.

Tracker technology matured. Trina Solar launched its new-generation Pioneer 2P intelligent tracker in 2023, adopting a multi-motor control system instead of traditional mechanical drive transmissions and integrating AI technology. Compared to ordinary algorithms, this tracker can increase power generation by over 3%. Antai New Energy's self-developed Yuguang series trackers passed stringent testing at the top wind tunnel laboratory CPP, ensuring operational stability under extreme wind and snow conditions and potentially increasing power generation efficiency by 18.5% to 24%. Guoqiang Xingsheng's GQ-T Chaoyang series trackers feature a multi-point support design, and their intelligent tracking algorithm can increase power generation by approximately 12%.

Flexible mounting systems became an industry "dark horse." At numerous industry forums and technology exhibitions in 2023, flexible mounting systems garnered significant attention due to their unique advantages of spanning large distances and adapting to complex terrains. He Dongtao, Application Technology Director at DAS Solar, introduced at the AsiaSolar 18th Asian Forum on Photovoltaic and Energy Storage Innovation and Cooperation that the company's flexible system uses pretensioned prestressed cables to control sag, combined with a north-south stabilizing cable-strut system, significantly improving wind vibration resistance. In mountainous PV applications, this system saves over 25% of land area. The 111 MW agricultural PV power generation project in Yingjiang, Yunnan Province, supported by Canadian Solar, is the largest single project in Southwest China utilizing flexible mounting technology. By mixing flexible and fixed-tilt systems, the project effectively improved land utilization on complex mountainous terrain. Additionally, DAS Solar's flexible systems have passed multiple extreme condition tests and can be flexibly applied to various scenarios including mountains, fish ponds, deserts, and distributed generation.

Material and structural innovations drove cost reduction and efficiency gains. In materials, Baowu Group's Central Research Institute globally launched its super weather-resistant tie bar steel for PV mounting structures. The product requires no coating or maintenance throughout its entire lifecycle, with material toughness increased by over 150%. In structural design, LONGi Green Energy obtained a new patent titled "A support truss for PV mounting structure, PV mounting structure, and PV power plant," whose unique support truss design significantly improves construction efficiency. Jinko Power's new mounting solution patent—a bifacial PV module mounting structure—optimizes the beam position (over 90mm from the module backsheet) to reduce rear-side shading, bringing additional power generation gains while reducing steel usage by 10% to 25%.

Mounting systems greatly simplified installation processes. Antai New Energy launched its SnapFit C&I commercial and industrial PV mounting system at the All-Energy 2023 exhibition. Featuring an innovative elastic drive mechanism, installation time is reduced by up to 50%, requiring only a single M8 tool for the entire installation process. U.S. company SnapNrack partnered with S-5! to integrate metal roof mounts and universal L-foot accessories into a kit solution, eliminating the tedious steps of assembling nuts and bolts on-site and simplifying PV installation on metal roofs. Dutch startup RABLE developed a self-supporting PV mounting system that can install solar panels on commercial flat roofs traditionally unsuitable for PV, without any roof renovation, providing a new clean energy retrofit solution for many older commercial buildings in Europe.

III. Application Expansion: From "Single-purpose Generation" to "Multi-scenario Integration"

In 2023, the application scenarios for PV mounting structures further expanded, from traditional ground-mounted power plants to diversified compound scenarios like "PV + agriculture," "PV + fisheries," and "PV + transportation," with flexible mounting systems playing a key role.

In the agrivoltaics field, the Three Gorges Huizhou Dongrun 70 MW agrivoltaic project—the first of its kind developed by Three Gorges Group in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area—achieved full grid connection in December 2023. The project pioneered a combination solution of "flexible systems + large-space fixed systems," providing ample space for crop cultivation under the panels and realizing the synergistic development of PV power generation and soilless vegetable cultivation. Through innovative practices, the project team has applied for 23 patents and been granted 14.

In the aquavoltaics field, the Jianli Wangqiao 100 MW aquavoltaic power station, invested in by Hubei Energy New Energy Company, achieved first-phase grid connection. This is the company's first demonstration project using flexible mounting systems and also its first self-built "PV + fisheries" project.

In mountainous agrivoltaics projects, the Fengqing Daxing agrivoltaic project in Yunnan was the first to adopt DAS Solar's flexible system technology, saving over 25% of land area compared to rigid systems, marking Yunnan's first flexible system project. Additionally, the Shihezi PV power generation base in Xinjiang introduced trackers that follow the sun's movement. Comparative experiments showed that trackers could increase power generation by about 7%.

Policies also actively promoted the application of PV mounting structures in multiple scenarios. In October 2023, the National Energy Administration issued a notice supporting pilot demonstrations of various PV application scenarios, including offshore PV, PV corridors (e.g., expressway and railway slopes), and PV desert control. These pilot projects impose higher requirements on the adaptability, durability, and cost-effectiveness of PV mounting structures.