In 2006, Tongwei entered into the PV industry and in 2007 acquired a factory producing polyvinyl chloride, a raw material for polysilicon production.

It encountered a lot of challenges during its early period into the industry as it had little experience and also was in a difficult economy caused by the 2007–2008 financial crisis.

PV power stations were placed over aquaculture ponds to generate electricity while farmers harvested at lower costs with higher efficiency.

The model could be applied to China's rural areas which were seen as helping the government achieve its goal of Targeted Poverty Alleviation.

[3] In August 2020, Tongwei's polysilicon-focused subsidiary, Yongxiang Co was forced to close its 20,000 tonne plant in Leshan due to a flood warning.