The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development has officially released: New Regulations for Photovoltaic Installation in New Buildings (National Standard GB 55015-2021)

On October 13, 2021, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of the People's Republic of China officially issued an announcement, approving the "General Specification for Building Energy Conservation and Renewable Energy Utilization" (GB 55015-2021) as a national standard, and clearly stated that the specification would be fully implemented as of April 1, 2022.

The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development emphasized in the announcement that the "Code" released this time is a mandatory engineering construction code, and all its provisions must be strictly implemented. The mandatory provisions in the current relevant engineering construction standards that are inconsistent with it shall be simultaneously abolished. If there is any conflict between the relevant provisions of the current engineering construction standards and this "Code", the provisions of this "Code" shall prevail.

The "Standards" clearly stipulate:

    • New buildings should be equipped with solar energy systems.

    • The design service life of solar collectors should be more than 15 years.

    • The design service life of photovoltaic modules should be higher than 25 years.

The introduction of the new national standard provides clear guidance and mandatory requirements for the application of photovoltaic integration in new buildings. In practice, some pioneering projects have demonstrated their alignment and forward-looking nature with the spirit of the new regulations. The 300MWp county-wide promotion rooftop distributed photovoltaic power station project (constructed in 2021-2022) undertaken by Solar First Group in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region is a representative case.

（The photovoltaic project of Solar First Group）

This project was strictly designed, material selected and constructed in accordance with high standards. The rooftop photovoltaic support system and the overall engineering installation standards it adopted fully comply with and even exceed in some aspects the requirements for the safety, reliability and service life of photovoltaic systems (such as over 25 years for components) stipulated in the new national standard GB 55015-2021 that is about to be implemented.

This large-scale project, which covers household residences, industrial and commercial factories, and government public buildings, has been successfully connected to the grid and put into operation. It not only responds in advance to the new regulations' guidance on the installation of solar systems in new buildings, but also provides valuable engineering practical experience and replicable technical solutions for the subsequent implementation of the new national standards across the country, especially for promoting the development of county-wide rooftop distributed photovoltaic systems.

The core content of the announcement is reaffirmed:

The General Specification for Building Energy Conservation and Renewable Energy Utilization (GB 55015-2021) has been approved as a national standard and will come into effect on April 1, 2022. This specification is a mandatory engineering construction standard, and all its provisions must be strictly implemented. The relevant mandatory provisions of the current engineering construction standards are simultaneously abolished. When the current standard provisions are inconsistent with this specification, this specification shall prevail.