Yet another Chinese company is making inroads into the US solar manufacturing industry after the passing of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Zhejiang Hounen Photoelectric Co Ltd will build a crystalline silicon PV panel manufacturing fab, its 1st in the US. It will have an annual capacity of 1 GW and be located in South Carolina, according to state Governor Henry McMaster.
Its local presence Hounen Solar America has picked Orangeburg County to host the fab on a 200,720 sq. ft. leased land at 145 Millennium Drive. It expects to create 200 jobs with this $33 million investment. Orangeburg County has secured a grant of $500,000 from the Coordinating Council for Economic Development as Rural Infrastructure Fund (RIF) to be used for the costs of building improvements.
Hounen Solar's CEO Jufang Lv said, "We are excited to announce our first manufacturing operations in the United States. Our new solar panel assembly plant will allow us to produce 1 GW crystalline silicon PV panels for markets in the US."
According to the company's website, Hounen Solar America was incorporated on November 22, 2022.No other details are yet available for Hounen's technology, or timeline of the planned fab.
Its news follows another Chinese producer and the world's largest solar company — LONGi has just announced joining hands with Invenergy for a 5 GW factory in Ohio (see LONGi Partners For 5 GW US Solar Module Fab).