Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 1 November 2026 · 7 sources
Chinese maker of back-contact solar cells and panels.
Until AIKO traces the silicon in its panels back to the smelter or quartz mine outside Xinjiang, it can't show that its panels are free of state-imposed forced labour.
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Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 1 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It relies on silicon it can't trace past the polysilicon plant. That alone means a poor grade until it takes steps to trace it.
- It isn't Harm on record, because there's no serious confirmed problem on its record.
- Lacks transparency is still a poor grade: in supply chains like this, workers who can't be seen to be treated fairly are usually underpaid or unprotected.
Good requirements 1 of 6
- Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: no evidence
- Not met: Respects worker rightsMost of its products are made in China, where unions are heavily restricted, and it has no full supply chain audit.
- Not met: Supply chain independently audited or certified, or at least 80% made in countries with strong labour standards
- Met: No child or forced labour findings or links
- Not met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that list
- Not met: Traces the silicon in its panels to the smelter or quartz mine, outside Xinjiang (for batteries and inverters: traces its battery metals to the mine)
Red flags 3
- Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
- Red flag: Made mostly in countries with poor worker rights, without a full independent audit of its supply chain
- Red flag: Relies on silicon it can't trace to the smelter
- Red flag: Fails its category's raw-material check (means Lacks transparency)
Stars it would earn as Good
None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars
Where it's made
AIKO says which countries it makes its products in, but doesn't name the factories.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| China | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
Evidence
What we found
- Risk across the industry, not a finding about this company: about a third of the world's polysilicon and silicon metal is made in Xinjiang, where state-run labour transfers amount to forced labour, and home batteries rely on cobalt, lithium and other metals linked to child and forced labour.
- Modern slavery statement
- Relies on polysilicon and silicon metal, about a third of which is made in Xinjiang, where the government moves Uyghur workers into factories that no independent auditor can visit. It hasn't shown any steps to trace the silicon in its panels back to the smelter, so it's graded Lacks transparency until it does.
Research notes AIKO makes its cells and modules in its own factories in China (Yiwu, Guangdong, Tianjin, Jinan and Chuzhou) and buys in silicon wafers. It names no polysilicon or silicon-metal suppliers, its 2023 ESG report does not mention Xinjiang, and its plan to extend traceability to all silicon was only a 2024 target; no AIKO factory holds a Solar Stewardship Initiative certificate. It reports on-site audits of core-material suppliers and a supplier code citing ILO conventions, but publishes no supplier list or audit results.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Solar Stewardship Initiative certified sites | Not listed | No AIKO factory holds a Solar Stewardship Initiative ESG or Supply Chain Traceability certificate (register checked November 2026). View |
| Renewable Energy & Human Rights Benchmark (Business & Human Rights Resource Centre) | Not listed | Not among the 35 wind and solar companies assessed in the 2025 Renewable Energy & Human Rights Benchmark. View |
| Business & Human Rights Resource Centre | Not listed | Not among the module makers rated in Sheffield Hallam University's 2023 assessment of exposure to Uyghur forced labour, which names AIKO only as a 2020 cell supplier to Canadian Solar; no allegations against AIKO were identified. View |
| Australian Modern Slavery Register | Listed | AIKO Energy Australia Pty Ltd lodges modern slavery statements (2023-24 and 2024-25 on the register). View |
| US forced-labour import bans (UFLPA Entity List, CBP Withhold Release Orders) | Not listed | AIKO and its subsidiaries are not on the UFLPA Entity List (29 October 2026 edition). View |
| US Department of Labor goods lists | Listed | The US Department of Labor's 2024 list names Chinese polysilicon and metallurgical-grade silicon as made with forced labour, and Chinese ingots, wafers, solar cells and modules as made with those inputs. View |
Sources and actions
Sources 7
Show all 7 sources
- Certified sites (Solar Stewardship Initiative) · search the archive · No AIKO site on the register
- Who's leading and who's lagging: 35 renewable giants ranked on human rights (BHRRC, 2025) · search the archive · List of 35 companies in the 2025 benchmark; AIKO not included
- Statement #2025-1675 (Australian Modern Slavery Register) · search the archive · AIKO Energy Australia Pty Ltd statements for 2023-24 and 2024-25
- DHS announces addition of 37 PRC-based companies to UFLPA Entity List (2025) · search the archive · Solar wafer makers listed for sourcing Xinjiang polysilicon; AIKO not among them
- List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor (US Department of Labor, 2024) · search the archive · Chinese polysilicon and metallurgical-grade silicon listed for forced labour; solar cells, modules, ingots and wafers for forced-labour inputs
- Over-Exposed: Uyghur Region Exposure Assessment for Solar Industry Sourcing (Sheffield Hallam University, 2023) · search the archive · AIKO named only as a 2020 cell supplier to Canadian Solar; not rated
Published by AIKO or its owner
- 2023 AIKO ESG Summary Report (AIKO) · search the archive · Manufacturing sites in Yiwu, Guangdong, Tianjin, Jinan and Chuzhou, China; 14,240 employees in 2023; 332 suppliers, 325 in mainland China; on-site audits of core-material suppliers; traceability to all silicon rods and silicon materials planned for 2024; no mention of Xinjiang or forced labour
Company details
- Headquarters
- China
- Employees
- About 14,240
- Last researched
- 1 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is AIKO ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/aiko, last researched 1 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means
Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent AIKO.