Hanwha Solutions to invest $2.6 bn to create solar hub in U.S.

Q CELLS in Georgia [Source : Hanwha Solutions]

South Korea’s Hanwha Solutions Corp. will invest 3.2 trillion won ($2.6 billion) to create a vast complex for solar panel component production in Georgia, U.S., a move that will accelerate its entry to North America.

Hanwha Solutions announced Wednesday that it will create a “solar hub,” or an integrated solar production complex, in Georgia, by next year, which will produce four key components in the solar value chain - ingot, wafer, cell and module.

The company currently operates a module plant with 1.7-gigawatt (GW) capacity in Georgia.

Shares of Hanwha Solutions shot up 5.45 percent to 49,300 won on Thursday morning.

The latest investment will be the “largest ever in the U.S. solar energy industry” thus far, according to the company, and will allow Hanwha Solutions to be “the first single operator in North America to be equipped with production lines for each key component of the solar value chain.”

Hanwha Solutions will build new production facilities for each ingots, wafers, cells and modules with 3.3GW annual capacity in Cartersville, Georgia. They will begin commercial operations at the end of next year.

The integration of the production lines will save logistics costs and improve operational efficiency, the company said, which will boost cost competitiveness. Cartersville is a 33-minute drive from Dalton, the location of Hanwha Solutions’ existing module plant.

Hanwha Solutions will also expand the annual production capacity of its Dalton factory that launched mass production of modules in 2019 to 5.1GW by the end of this year, up from current 1.7GW. It plans to expand production line by 1.4GW in the first half of this year and add 2GW to capacity by December.

Hanwha Solutions’ module production capacity will reach 8.4GW once the construction of facilities in Dalton and Cartersville are completed at the end of next year, the largest capacity by a solar manufacturer that produces modules based on silicon solar cells in North America.

“A 8.4GW module can produce enough energy to supply to 1.3 million households per year,” said Ryu Seong-joo, head of U.S. manufacturing at Q CELLS division of Hanwha Solutions. “It will help reduce 9.78 million tons of carbon dioxide.”

Q CELLS in Georgia [Source : Hanwha Solutions]

Hanwha Solutions is hoping to benefit from tax grants under the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) that went into effect this year. Companies that produce solar-related products in the U.S. are subject to tax credits. Hanwha Solutions is expected to benefit from a tax cut of $875 million every year when it completes the solar hub.

“Our goal is to maximize our competitiveness by making the most of the U.S. government’s clean energy policy,” said Lee Koo-yung, chief executive officer of Hanwha Solutions’ Q CELLS division. “We expect a significant improvement in solar business sales and profitability once the solar hub begins operations.”

Hanwha Solutions, in the meantime, is considering using polysilicon manufactured by REC Silicon Inc. at its solar hub production line. REC Silicon is a hydropower-based ecofriendly polysilicon manufacturer based in Moses Lake, Washington, which was acquired by Hanwha Solutions last year.

Hanwha Solutions is REC Silicon’s largest shareholder with a 21.34 percent stake. REC Silicon will begin production of 5.3GW cells from the end of this year to mass produce 16,000 tons of polysilicon annually.

“The solar hub will be a key production base for the U.S. solar industry that is projected to grow 20 percent every year,” Lee said.

U.S. President Joe Biden welcomed Hanwha Solutions’ investment.

“Today’s announcement by Hanwha Q Cells that it will make the largest solar investment in American history is a big boost for working families in Georgia and the American economy,” he said in a statement. “Hanwha Q Cells’ investment will create thousands of high-paying jobs in Georgia, many of which do not require a four-year college degree.”