Han Rongtao Honored As "2023 Shandong Top 10 Financial Elites"

On April 28, the much-watched release ceremony of the "2023 Shandong Financial Elite List" was grandly held in Jinan, Shandong Province. At this grand event focusing on the driving forces of Shandong's economic development, Han Rongtao, Chairman of SOLETKS Group, was successfully awarded the title of "2023 Shandong Top 10 Financial Elites" in recognition of his outstanding achievements and contributions in the flat-plate solar energy sector. This honor not only represents high recognition of Han Rongtao's personal leadership but also marks that he has become the first entrepreneur in Shandong's flat-plate solar energy industry to receive this prestigious award, setting a new benchmark for the industry's development.

As the most influential financial ceremony in Shandong Province, the "Shandong Financial Elite List" is sponsored by Dazhong News Group and co-organized by Shandong University of Finance and Economics, Shandong Academy of Macroeconomic Research, Shandong Internet Media Group, and the Editorial Office of Economic Herald. Since its establishment, the list has consistently aimed to identify Shandong's key players, role models, and benchmarks amid the tide of national development. Its selection criteria cover multiple dimensions, including corporate performance, industry influence, innovation capabilities, and social contributions, ensuring the authority and credibility of the results. Han Rongtao's selection this time is a full recognition from the organizing committee and all sectors of society for his leadership in driving technological progress in the industry, boosting regional economic development, and practicing the concept of green and low-carbon development with SOLETKS Group.

Notably, shortly before the release of the "2023 Shandong Financial Elite List," Han Rongtao gained another important recognition in the industry. At the annual meeting of the Clean Energy Application Branch of the China Building Metal Structure Association, he was elected as the new president of the branch, thanks to his profound industry experience and forward-looking vision. The dual honors not only demonstrate Han Rongtao's influence in both Shandong's financial sector and the national clean energy industry but also reflect the industry's high trust in his ability to lead the high-quality development of the flat-plate solar energy industry.

A review of Han Rongtao's resume reveals his dedication to the industry and commitment to innovation behind his multiple roles. In addition to serving as the founder and chairman of SOLETKS Group, he is a leader in technology – as the inventor of the patented "high-weather-resistance selective absorption coating based on aluminum and its preparation method." This core technological breakthrough has laid a solid foundation for improving the performance and optimizing the cost of flat-plate solar collectors. In terms of academic and industry organizations, he holds the position of Vice Chairman of the Professional Committee for Integration of Solar Building Materials and Components of the Architectural Society of China. Meanwhile, he is employed as a visiting professor at three universities: Beijing University of Technology, Shandong Jianzhu University, and Dezhou University, continuously promoting in-depth industry-university-research integration. Furthermore, he holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree from Tsinghua University and participated in compiling the "13th Five-Year Plan" textbook for general higher education, Principles and Applications of Flat-Plate Solar Collectors, integrating practical experience with theoretical research to provide strong support for talent cultivation in the industry.

Under Han Rongtao's leadership, SOLETKS Group has grown into a leading enterprise in China's flat-plate solar energy sector. As a technology-driven group specializing in the R&D and production of flat-plate solar energy systems, SOLETKS owns seven subsidiaries, including Jinheng New Energy, Bangte New Energy, Feitian New Energy, SOLETKS Solar Energy, and Jinnai'er New Materials. It has established six production bases, with an annual output of 3.7 GWth of flat-plate clean thermal energy equipment, ranking second globally in terms of production scale. Since its establishment, the group has been committed to advancing technological progress and large-scale application of China's flat-plate solar energy industry. Its products and solutions are widely used in fields such as building energy consumption, agricultural planting and breeding, industrial heat supply, and new infrastructure, providing diversified clean energy comprehensive utilization services including heating, cooling, hot water, and electricity for society. It has made significant contributions to promoting energy conservation and emission reduction, advancing the realization of the "dual carbon" goals, and facilitating social sustainable development.

Technological innovation is the key to SOLETKS Group's core competitiveness. To build a comprehensive innovation system, the group has established a multi-level R&D platform consisting of "7 cooperative research institutions + 4 technical departments + 1 research institute + 1 laboratory + 1 thermal energy college," forming a full-chain innovation capability covering basic research, technological breakthroughs, and achievement transformation. Up to now, the group has accumulated 117 patented technologies and industry solutions. These innovative achievements have not only enhanced the company's own product competitiveness but also driven technological upgrading of the entire flat-plate solar energy industry, providing strong support for the industry to overcome "chokepoint" technological challenges and achieve high-quality development. With its outstanding innovation capabilities and steady development momentum, SOLETKS Group has successively obtained honors such as "National Specialized, Refined, Peculiar, and Innovative 'Little Giant' Enterprise," "National High-Tech Enterprise," "National Solar Thermal Utilization Product 'Pioneer'," "Shandong Provincial 'Specialized, Refined, Peculiar, and Innovative' Enterprise," "Shandong Provincial Enterprise Technology Center," and "Shandong Provincial Gazelle Enterprise," becoming a model of innovative development in the industry.

Looking back on the company's development history, two key strategic transformations have been crucial to SOLETKS's leapfrog growth, and behind each transformation lies Han Rongtao's forward-looking decisions and decisive layout. In 2011, in response to market changes and industry trends, Han Rongtao keenly identified the broad prospects of flat-plate solar collectors and led the company in its first transformation – shifting from the manufacturing of core solar energy materials to the R&D and manufacturing of flat-plate solar collectors. This transformation not only enabled the company to successfully enter the high-value-added link of the industrial chain but also marked the start of its rapid development and high-performance growth. From 2011 to 2020, the company achieved an average annual compound growth rate of 88% for ten consecutive years, with its scale expanding by 293 times over the decade, completing its transformation from an industry follower to a leader.

In 2022, against the backdrop of the in-depth advancement of the "dual carbon" strategy and the accelerated transformation of the energy structure, Han Rongtao once again demonstrated his outstanding strategic vision by leading the company in its second strategic transformation. Through the reallocation of corporate resources, SOLETKS focused its development on the flat-plate solar energy application market, promoting the company's shift from traditional solar water heating business to flat-plate clean "thermal energy" utilization. This further expanded the application scenarios of its products and technologies, successfully entering the trillion-yuan-scale clean energy application market. This transformation not only allowed the company to seize opportunities in the new energy industry wave but also provided more cutting-edge technological solutions for the steady advancement of the national "dual carbon" strategy, setting a benchmark for the industry to explore diversified development paths.

Currently, China is in a critical stage of promoting high-quality development and building new-quality productive forces. The in-depth implementation of the "dual carbon" strategy has brought unprecedented development opportunities to the clean energy industry. Han Rongtao's recognition as "2023 Shandong Top 10 Financial Elites" is not only a summary of his past achievements but also an expectation for his future leadership in the industry. Standing at a new starting point, Han Rongtao stated that he will take this award as an opportunity to continue leading SOLETKS Group in deepening its focus on the flat-plate solar energy sector, continuously advancing technological innovation, and enhancing independent innovation capabilities. At the same time, he will actively promote industry talent development, upstream and downstream collaboration in the industrial chain, and optimize resource allocation efficiency, helping the flat-plate solar energy industry in Shandong and across China achieve higher-quality and more sustainable development, and contributing more "Shandong strength" to China's energy structure transformation and the realization of the "dual carbon" goals.