On the evening of March 28, GCL Technology (03800.HK) released its 2024 annual financial report. During the reporting period, the company recorded revenue of approximately RMB 15.1 billion and net profit attributable to shareholders of –RMB 4.75 billion. Affected by the industry cycle, polysilicon prices fell to historic lows, and GCL Technology was not immune. However, company data show that the cash manufacturing cost of its core product, granular silicon, reached a new low of RMB 27.14/kg. The proportion of high-quality products rose to over 95%, market share exceeded 25%, inventory remained the lowest in the industry, and the adoption rate among leading customers surpassed 40%.

According to the financial report, starting from the second quarter of 2024, GCL Technology narrowed losses quarter by quarter, with its overall operating fundamentals gradually stabilizing and improving, taking the lead in breaking through the industry’s “involution-style competition.” This progress was largely driven by the strong market performance of granular silicon.

From January to February this year, the cash manufacturing cost of granular silicon (including R&D) had already dropped to RMB 27.14/kg, while the tax-exclusive selling price reached RMB 31.1/kg. Compared with the Q3 2024 cash cost of RMB 33.18/kg and tax-exclusive selling price of RMB 28.98/kg, costs declined significantly while prices continued to rise. The proportion of high-quality granular silicon products increased to over 95%, and market share reached 25.76%.

In addition, GCL Technology’s total granular silicon production capacity in 2024 reached 480,000 tons, with output of 269,200 tons (up 32% year-on-year) and shipments of 281,900 tons (up 45% year-on-year), resulting in a sales-to-production ratio of 105%.

At the 2024 annual results briefing held on the morning of March 29, Chairman Zhu Gongshan stated that GCL Technology’s granular silicon inventory hit the lowest level in the industry, with top-tier customer application exceeding 40%, making it an unstoppable mainstream product and providing strong resilience and confidence for the company to weather industry cycles.

Product quality improvements in granular silicon also remained notable. As of February 2025, products with ≤0.5 ppbw total metal impurities across five elements accounted for over 95%, those with ≤1 ppbw across 18 elements exceeded 91%, and products with turbidity ≤100 NTU exceeded 97%. In addition, a new ≤70 NTU turbidity indicator was introduced for the first time, with such products already accounting for over 41%.

It is also worth noting that R&D expenditure in 2024 reached RMB 1.102 billion, representing approximately 7.3% of revenue, an increase of 1.7 percentage points year-on-year. Under strong R&D investment, GCL Technology’s CCz technology achieved breakthroughs in reducing interstitial oxygen impurities in 2024. Through thermal field restructuring and process optimization, oxygen impurity levels have become comparable to those of RCz technology, and CCz-produced wafers have been delivered to downstream manufacturers for testing.

Furthermore, GCL Technology stated that it has established a comprehensive intellectual property protection system, combining patents, trade secrets, and non-compete agreements to build a strong IP “moat” and continuously raise the technological entry barrier for granular silicon production. The company has also formed a dedicated IP enforcement team to take firm action against any infringement.

In emerging businesses, GCL Technology’s incubated perovskite project achieved major breakthroughs in “high efficiency, large size, and stability.” Conversion efficiencies for 1m × 2m single-junction and tandem modules reached 19.04% and 26.36%, respectively, ranking first globally. Production costs are 50% lower than crystalline silicon cells, and the project obtained TÜV Rheinland’s first global reliability certification for large-size modules, reinforcing its global leadership.

Driven by the AI wave, GCL Technology is actively promoting AI-enabled R&D and manufacturing, taking the lead in introducing AI-powered high-throughput equipment to achieve fully automated production and analysis, significantly accelerating perovskite R&D. Zhu Gongshan noted that by the end of 2025, the efficiency of 2.88 m² perovskite tandem modules is expected to reach 27%, laying a solid foundation for a new efficiency revolution in photovoltaics.

Additionally, the company announced that it possesses over 600,000 tons of silane gas production capacity, ranking first globally. Beyond supplying granular silicon production, silane applications are expanding from TOPCon and BC solar cells, display panels, and semiconductors to silicon-carbon anode materials and other new energy materials. Currently, silane gas quality has reached electronic-grade standards, with an external domestic market share of approximately 25%. Owing to its flexible adjustment and expansion capabilities, GCL plans to dynamically balance internal use and external sales according to market conditions, making silane gas an important future growth driver.

Energy storage materials are another key breakthrough direction. The company stated it will leverage its inherent advantages in self-produced silane gas, CVD processes, and fluidized-bed technology teams to enter the field of high-purity, high-value silicon-based derivatives—silicon-carbon anodes, with expected comprehensive manufacturing costs over 25% lower than industry peers.

According to Zhu Gongshan, GCL Technology’s new businesses in carbon nanotubes and graphite electrodes have completed customer validation, while reserve projects involving silicon carbide, silicon nitride, and other materials are accelerating R&D. The company will continue to embrace the industrial, supply, and ecosystem chains, expand application scenarios, and build a new comprehensive new-energy materials group.

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