The photovoltaic industry is a strategic emerging industry with global competitive advantages in my country, playing a key role in promoting the transition of China's energy structure to a clean, low-carbon one. In addressing global climate change, China has actively practiced the concept of building a community with a shared future for mankind, demonstrating its responsibility as a major country. At this year's United Nations Climate Change Conference, President Xi Jinping explicitly stated that by 2035, China's economy-wide net greenhouse gas emissions will be reduced by 7% to 10% from their peak. This new target places higher demands on the transformation of the energy system. Achieving green, low-carbon development throughout the photovoltaic industry's life cycle must rely on the "dual-wheel drive" of technological innovation and the development of a standards system. This is not only a key path to achieving the "dual carbon" goals, but also a concrete action for China to participate in global climate governance and promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.

Establishing a comprehensive carbon footprint accounting system for photovoltaic products provides the quantitative foundation for achieving green management throughout their entire life cycle. There is an urgent need to standardize accounting standards, improve data transparency and traceability, and enhance international comparability through methodological innovation. In August 2024, the General Office of the State Council issued the "Work Plan for Accelerating the Establishment of a Dual Control System for Carbon Emissions," which explicitly calls for the development of carbon footprint accounting standards for key products, including photovoltaics. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has also emphasized the establishment of unified accounting rules in subsequent implementation. Under this policy guidance, we should accelerate the establishment of carbon emissions accounting standards covering the entire industry chain, from silicon materials and wafers to solar cells and modules, to form a unified, transparent, and traceable data system. Furthermore, we should build a credible carbon footprint background database to support accurate accounting and ensure international comparability of results.

The recycling of retired photovoltaic modules is crucial for completing the "last mile" of the photovoltaic green cycle. As early-installed modules gradually enter retirement, achieving large-scale, high-value recycling has become a pressing task for the industry. This requires both standardized disassembly processes and recycling systems, as well as advanced recycling technologies to enhance resource re-value. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has prioritized the development of standards for the refined disassembly and comprehensive utilization of retired modules. Next steps should be to promote standardized disassembly and classification, establish scientific and standardized disassembly processes, promote the efficient development of recycling technologies, and increase the extraction rate of valuable elements. Furthermore, a standardized system for the application of recycled materials should be established to promote the efficient recycling of resources. Through standardization, retired modules can be transformed into "urban minerals," truly achieving a closed-loop utilization and green recycling of photovoltaic industry resources.

Looking ahead, the competitive dimension of the photovoltaic industry is expanding from cost and efficiency to green, low-carbon development. Grasping the two key areas of carbon footprint accounting and recycling of retired modules, establishing and improving a green, low-carbon technology and standards system, and synergistically promoting technological iteration and standards leadership will inject new competitive momentum into the photovoltaic industry and shape its core advantage in the global green energy landscape. Against this backdrop, the China Electronics Standardization Institute and the China Photovoltaic Industry Association will co-host the "Photovoltaic Industry High-Quality Development and Technical Standards Forum" in Changji, Xinjiang, from October 23-24 , 2025. The forum will feature a main forum and three sub-forums , focusing on photovoltaic cell and module quality improvement and technical standard innovation, photovoltaic system quality improvement and technical standard innovation, and green, low-carbon technologies and standards for the photovoltaic industry. Concurrently, the 2025 Annual Meeting and Working Group Meeting of the National Technical Committee for Standardization of Solar Photovoltaic Energy Systems (SAC/TC90) will be held on October 22-23.