Comment | Export tax rebates "decrease" | New energy industry "climbs"

CCTV Finance Commentary | Export Tax Rebate “Decreases” as New Energy Industry “Climbs”

Source: CCTV Finance

According to relevant policy arrangements, starting April 1, the value-added tax export rebate for photovoltaic-related products will be directly reduced from the current 9% to 0; the export VAT rebate rate for battery products will be lowered from 9% to 6% from the same date until December 31 of this year, and will be fully canceled from January 1, 2027.

In recent years, affected by excessive competition, China’s photovoltaic industry product export prices have continued to decline, showing a trend of “increased volume, decreased price.” Notably, the energy storage battery industry is also showing signs of similar competition. For this reason, the adjustment of the export rebate policy is seen as an important measure to comprehensively regulate the industry’s “involution-style competition.” Chen Haisheng, director of the Institute of Engineering Thermophysics at the Chinese Academy of Sciences and chairman of the Zhongguancun Energy Storage Technology and Industry Alliance, told CCTV Finance Commentary that in the past few years, there have indeed been phenomena of “involution externalization,” such as low-price competition and a focus on scale, which ultimately left everyone with little profit and no funds for R&D. Even if they temporarily gained market share, it would reduce long-term innovation capacity and affect the Chinese manufacturing brand. But from the decision-makers’ perspective, countering involution is just a means; promoting development is the goal. The aim is to steer competition back onto a healthy, positive track through anti-involution measures; at the same time, development promotion is not about blindly expanding scale but about high-quality, sustainable growth.

Yang Rui, chairman of Dengdeng Co., Ltd., a globally leading energy storage enterprise and a member of the Smart Computing Center, said that the policy adjustment also sends a signal to enterprises. Energy storage companies should think more about how to make three transitions: how to shift from “price competition” to “capability competition,” focusing on product strength, system capability, and delivery ability; how to move from “export mindset” to “localization mindset,” doing manufacturing, services, and building ecosystems locally; and how to transition from “choosing cyclical industries” to “building new infrastructure,” finding points of integration with the new generation of digital economy.

So, how should we view the direct impact and long-term effects of policy adjustments on related industries and enterprises? Chen Haisheng told CCTV Finance Commentary that in the short term, the entire industry will face direct cost pressure. Previously, this part of the rebate was profit, or even the cost for enterprises to offer discounts to seize market share. Now that the rebate is canceled, they will have to absorb it internally or renegotiate prices with overseas clients, which will inevitably involve a process of bargaining and balancing. But in the long run, the industry is being pushed to shift from “price competition” to “value competition,” which will certainly promote many enterprises to improve technological levels, enhance product value, and move toward high-quality development.

Yang Rui stated that the future operational choices of related enterprises will be more driven by the market. As technological routes develop towards diversified and complementary depths, genuine competition among enterprises is just beginning.