China solar slows again in Q1 – Is this just coronavirus?

China’s solar installations in Q1 2020 totaled only 3950 MW – only 74% of the value for Q1 2019 according to as translation of data from the National Energy Administration of China, published this week. This is also a significant dip compared to 2019 overall, during which the country installed 30 GW. Even so, solar made up 29% of the overall 13.5 GW of capacity installed from all sources in the quarter. Chinese solar has been in decline in 2019, almost entirely due the phasing out of subsidies and a new auction setup in which wind and solar must compete against the other generation types. From a high point of 56 GW in 2017, solar installs fell to 44 GW…