(Yicai Global) March 23 -- JA Solar Technology, a leading Chinese photovoltaic equipment maker, said profit surged 171 percent last year to surpass the combined total of the previous three years, as demand for solar panels climbed.

Net profit was CNY5.5 billion (USD803 million) in the 12 months ended Dec. 31, compared with a total of CNY4.8 billion in the years 2019 to 2021, the firm said in an earnings report released late yesterday. Revenue jumped 77 percent to nearly CNY73 billion (USD10.7 billion).

Beijing-based JA Solar attributed the results to new production capacity and higher PV module sales amid soaring demand from solar power stations.

The company’s shares [SHE: 002459] finished up 0.6 percent at CNY54.78 (USD8.03) each today, after jumping by as much as 2.7 percent in the morning trading session.

Income from the solar battery module business was CNY70.3 billion last year, accounting for more than 96 percent of total revenue. Thanks to relatively balanced production capacities along the whole industry chain, gross profit margin at JA Solar’s module business edged up 0.2 point to 14.3 percent, despite silicon prices jumping to a decade high.

JA Solar sold 39.75 gigawatts of solar battery modules in 2022, with overseas sales accounting for about 58 percent of the total. Its module output capacity was about 50 GW by the end of the year, while its wafer and battery capacity were both roughly 80 percent of its module capacity.

Module capacity is likely to exceed 80 GW by the end of this year, with the firm’s wafer and battery capacity both increasing to 90 percent of its module capacity, the JA Solar predicted. The company aims to sell 60 GW to 65 GW of modules this year, up about 50 percent from last year.

In a separate statement the same day, JA Solar said its board had approved a CNY12.8 billion investment plan for new plants in Ordos in China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. A silicon wafer plant with annual production capacity of 20 GW, and a cell plant that can turn out 30 GW a year will be built in phases, with both expected to be go into operation within the next 36 months.

The plants are part of a CNY40 billion project JA Solar announced in January. It also plans to build a silicon production plant with an annual capacity of 100,000 tons and a module plant with annual capacity of 10 GW in Ordos.

Editor: Martin Kadiev