The spate of monocrystalline solar cell production expansion continues unabated in China with almost all major manufacturers announcing one project after the other. The latest in line is LONGi Green Energy Technology Co., Ltd. that has announced a 15 GW production in Shaanxi province of China.
It recently entered into an investment agreement with the administration of Xixian New District to invest approximately RMB 8 billion ($1.23 billion) in the new project in Jinghe New City. The project is to be constructed in phases and planned to be put into production in 2022. According to the stock exchange announcement made by LONGi, its implementation will be planned post a project feasibility analysis.
A new project company in Jinghe New City will be formed to execute the process. LONGi said the investment is in line with its strategic needs for solar cell capacity planning in the future, enabling it to capture opportunities in the PV market and further enhance its high efficiency cell production capacity.
Earlier this month, LONGi announced it will invest RMB 3 billion to add a 3 GW monocrystalline solar cell production line in Ningxia which will become fully operational by December 2021 (see China PV Snippets: Zhongli, Jinko, CSI, Tongwei, GCL, LONGi).
A year back, LONGi Green Energy said it will build a new 10 GW monocrystalline solar cell facility in Xi'an where in Shaanxi where the company is headquartered (see LONGi To Build 10 GW Monocrystalline Cell Fab).
New business for LONGi group
In a separate development within the LONGi group, an affiliate of the company Dalian Linton NC Machine Co., Ltd. declared it plans to develop a new business line, venturing into the production of electronic grade silver powder. Dalian Linton is mainly into the manufacturing of solar PV and semiconductor equipment, in particular wire sawing equipment, a key component for producing wafers – and important for LONGi as the world's largest wafer maker.
Electronic grade silver powder is a core material of solar cell paste hence one of the most crucial elements of solar cell process materials. Currently, upstream companies depend on imports to fulfil their requirements of this key element. Having an in-house production will lower production costs significantly, stated Dalian Linton. Calling it a prudent decision based on the company's strategic planning objectives, Dalian said the new business addition is broadening its industrial footprint and improve overall competitiveness. "Effective supply chain and marketing channels and large scale mass production will have a positive impact on the company's revenue, to a certain extent," it added.
Under an agreement signed with the Jiangsu Dafeng Economic Development Zone Management Committee, Dalian Linton said it aims to invest RMB 150 million ($23 million) in the development of electronic grade silver powder in the Dafeng Development Zone of Yancheng City in Jiangsu province.
The company plans to set up the project through a new project company called Jiangsu Lianyin New Materials Co., Ltd. The new business, it said, is still in the early stages of research and development.
LONGi Solar is participating in TaiyangNews' virtual conference on Advanced Solar Modules on January 27 and 28, 2021 where the company's representative Jason Yan will talk about Smart Soldering for Advanced Solar Modules. Free registrations are open here.