JinkoSolar Announces First Quarter 2024 Financial Results

JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd., one of the largest and most innovative solar module manufacturers in the world, announced its unaudited financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2024.

First Quarter 2024 Business Highlights

• Leveraging our outstanding N-type technology, extensive global operation network, and advanced integrated capacity structure, module shipments increased 53.3% year-over-year to 19.99 GW, ranking first in the industry.
• N-type module shipments accounted for nearly 80% of all module shipments globally and nearly 50% of module shipments to North America.
• Our order book visibility for 2024 currently exceeds 70%.
• We were recognized as a Tier 1 energy storage provider by Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF).

First Quarter 2024 Operational and Financial Highlights

• Quarterly shipments were 21,907 MW (19,993 MW for solar modules, and 1,914 MW for cells and wafers), down 21.4% sequentially, and up 51.2% year-over-year.
• Total revenues were RMB23.04 billion (US$3.19 billion), down 29.8% sequentially and down 1.2% year-over-year.
• Gross profit was RMB2.74 billion (US$378.8 million), down 33.1% sequentially and down 32.3% year-over-year.
• Gross margin was 11.9%, compared with 12.5% in Q4 2023 and 17.3% in Q1 2023.
• Net income attributable to JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd.’s ordinary shareholders was RMB 609.4 million (US$84.4 million), compared with RMB29.3 million in Q4 2023 and RMB788.7 million in Q1 2023.
• Adjusted net income attributable to JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd.’s ordinary shareholders, which excludes the impact from (i) a change in fair value of the convertible senior notes, (ii) a change in fair value of long-term investment, and (iii) share-based compensation expenses, was RMB470.3 million (US$65.1 million), compared with adjusted net income attributable to JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd.’s ordinary shareholders of RMB462.7 million in Q4 2023 and RMB836.4 million in Q1 2023.
• Basic and diluted earnings per ordinary share were RMB2.82 (US$0.39) and RMB1.34 (US$ 0.19), respectively. This translates into basic and diluted earnings per ADS of RMB 11.28 (US$1.56) and RMB5.36 (US$0.74), respectively.

Mr. Xiande Li, JinkoSolar’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “We are pleased to announce that our module shipments grew 53.3% year-over-year to 19.99 GW in the first quarter, ranking first in the industry. Notably, N-type shipments accounted for nearly 80%, solidifying our leading position in the industry. Module prices continued to fall in the first quarter. While the industry average utilization rate declined sharply, we maintained our leading utilization rate at a high level, leading the industry. Over 70% of modules were shipped to overseas markets in the first quarter, with a significant sequential increase in the proportion of shipments to Europe and the U.S. Gross margin was 11.9%, flat sequentially. Net income was US$84.4 million, up 19.8 times sequentially. Adjusted net income to JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd.’s ordinary shareholders was US$65.1 million, up 1.6% sequentially.

Newly added installations in China reached 45.7 GW, an increase of 35.9% year-over-year. Module exports totaled 61.7 GW, an increase of over 20% year-over-year. The PV industry remained one of the few sectors maintaining a high growth rate, and we expect global PV demand to grow by approximately 25%–30% in 2024. While polysilicon prices continued to decline in the second quarter, with supply surpassing demand, module prices remained relatively stable due to increases in the cost of some materials. We expect the profitability of integrated solar companies to come under pressure in the short term, and the impact on different companies varies depending on their specific operational capabilities. As a result, we believe overall production capacity in our industry will shrink with the elimination of weaker players that lack market competitiveness, sustainable production capabilities, and the ability to regularly upgrade and iterate technology.

In response to pressure along the industry chain, we continue to deploy new technologies to improve the mass-produced efficiency of TOPCon cells and module output while reducing costs through optimization of the supply chain and production process. We are accelerating the phasing out of our P-type capacity and expect our N-type capacity to exceed 90% of total capacity by the end of 2024 and our advanced capacity structure to continue to lead the industry.

We have the largest overseas integrated capacity in the industry and continuously work to expand the global industry chain. Our 1GW N-type module capacity in the U.S. has started production, and another 1GW is expected to start production in the second quarter of 2024. With the strength of our global operations and long-accumulated experience in risk management, we are confident in our ability to quickly adapt to changes in international trade and continue to deliver premium products and services to our global clients.

According to the latest predictions by the International Energy Agency (IEA), solar PV and wind will account for 95% of global renewable expansion, and by 2028, the share of wind and solar PV in global electricity generation will double to 25%. Meanwhile, the declining cost of solar + storage will continue to improve the economics of investing in PV storage projects. We strongly believe that solar+storage will become the major model for future growth in electricity generation and are confident we will continue to lead the industry with advanced technologies and premium high-efficiency products.

We expect module shipments to be between 24.0 GW and 26.0 GW for the second quarter of 2024, and between 100.0 GW and 110.0 GW for the full year of 2024, with N-type modules accounting for nearly 90% of total module shipments. We expect our annual production capacity for mono wafers, solar cells, and solar modules to reach 120.0 GW, 110.0 GW, and 130.0 GW, respectively, by the end of 2024. By then, we believe the mass-produced N-type cell efficiency will have reached 26.5%.