Shanghai Private Company Develops Sun-Tracking Solar System, Boosting Efficiency by 30%

Even as China's solar energy industry faces severe 'involution,' some companies are trying to forge a new path through technological innovation. A private green energy technology company in Shanghai has developed an 'Intelligent Folding Sun-Tracking Power Generation System,' which uses pole-mounted folding solar panels combined with 'smart sun tracking' to increase power generation efficiency by more than 30%.

The 2026 Shanghai International Carbon Neutrality Technology, Products, and Achievements Expo (Carbon Expo) will be held from the 10th to the 12th. On the 4th, the Shanghai Municipal Government organized a visit for Chinese and foreign media to related companies.

The visited companies included Shanghai Jianke Consulting Group, which focuses on green building consulting, inspection, and testing; Shanghai Electric Wind Power Group, which designs, develops, manufactures, and sells wind power equipment and components; and Shanghai Xingye Materials Technology, which specializes in green energy technology and product R&D.

Among them, the 'Intelligent Folding Sun-Tracking Power Generation System' developed by Xingye Technology is particularly distinctive. The company's Vice President Chen Hui introduced that this solar power system adopts a pole design. It not only does not occupy land, can be installed on lawns or beside rivers, but also does not block sunlight for existing vegetation. The four solar panels installed on the pole can be folded to avoid rain, snow, and strong winds, reducing maintenance costs.

Chen Hui stated that the system's biggest feature is its smart sun-tracking design. Using astronomical algorithms, AI, and sensors to track sunlight, it can always face the sun's direction. This improves power generation efficiency by 30% to 40% compared to traditional centralized solar panels, and by 70% to 90% compared to rooftop distributed solar panels.

Xingye Technology's Operations Director Huang Mingwu demonstrated and introduced 39 units of the 'Intelligent Folding Sun-Tracking Power Generation System' installed along the Suzhou Creek behind a business park. He stated that through 'green electricity direct connection' technology, they can supply power for the park's offices, factory production, and electric vehicle charging stations. He emphasized that almost all the electricity for their own factory production is supplied by these 39 units.

However, Xingye does not make a living by 'selling equipment,' but by 'selling electricity.'

Huang Mingwu expressed their hope to cooperate with the Shanghai Municipal Government to build this solar system on a large scale. 'Shanghai's green electricity gap is 20 billion kWh per year. If we can install on one-fifth of (Shanghai's) rivers, and also install in some industrial parks, we can basically meet the supply of all of Shanghai's green electricity gap, thus solving Shanghai's green electricity supply problem,' he said.

He noted that eastern Chinese cities need a large amount of green electricity and currently rely on 'West-to-East Power Transmission,' which has high transmission costs. With their green electricity direct connection technology, power can be supplied locally.

When asked by a reporter why they chose to sell electricity rather than equipment, Huang Mingwu explained, 'From a corporate profitability perspective, once you sell the device, the profit is fixed. The device has a 25-year lifespan, and you can't make much money after that.' But from an operational perspective, 'if you can generate this much electricity, you control the electricity. What is electricity? It is used every day.' Moreover, this aligns with the current direction of China's national policy, making it a perfect combination of favorable timing, geographical advantage, and human harmony.

He also frankly stated that as a private enterprise, they will inevitably cooperate with state-owned enterprises in the future. 'This energy cake is so big, it's a matter of national security. You can't touch it casually,' he said. (Editor: Yang Shengru) 1150604