Huge solar energy profits, football corruption, Genki Forest arrest

The world’s leading supplier of polysilicon for solar panels estimates a 231% increase in profits last year, Tongwei Group 通威集团 said in its latest forecast, amounting to 27.2 billion yuan ($4.02 billion). Tongwei, one of China’s most profitable companies, is a dominant player in China’s rapidly expanding solar industry. Daqo New Energy 大全能源, another polysilicon manufacturer, also announced up to 19.2 billion yuan ($2.83 billion) in 2022 profits, an increase of 235%.

Corruption at the Chinese Football Association (CFA) has ensnared two more senior officials, with the suspension of former secretary-general Liú Yì 刘奕 and deputy secretary-general Chén Yǒngliàng 陈永亮 for unspecified “serious violations of the law.” China’s men’s national soccer team, whose only World Cup appearance was in 2002, has faced persistent criticism from fans amid a series of scandals. The latest suspensions are reportedly linked to an investigation into Lǐ Tiě 李铁, the former coach of the men’s national team.

A senior manager at Genki Forest has been arrested for corruption: Genki Forest 元气森林 is China’s fastest-growing beverage brand, founded in 2016 by a team of tech entrepreneurs with no previous experience in the beverages industry. Yesterday, the company confirmed that Yè Lǐchéng 叶礼诚, who in 2021 was in charge of the company’s entire sales and marketing team, has been handed over to the authorities. In 2021, Genki Forest had annual sales of around 10 billion yuan ($1.58 billion).