- JinkoSolar has confirmed the development of its 7 GW monocrystalline ingot and wafer production plant in Vietnam
- On coming online in Q1/2022, it will support the company’s existing overseas production facilities
- JinkoSolar has also shared the expected 9M/2021 financial results of its principal operating subsidiary, in compliance with the SSE
Chinese solar cell and module maker JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd. has officially confirmed it is building a monocrystalline ingot and wafer manufacturing facility in Vietnam with 7 GW annual capacity. In August 2021, there were reports from Vietnam regarding this fab (see JinkoSolar Building 7 GW Wafer Plant In Vietnam).
The $500 million fab is being constructed in Quảng Yên Coastal Economic Zone of Quảng Ninh Province, and will support its existing overseas production facilities, including its US location once it comes online in Q1/2022.
Terming the decision to have a Vietnam based solar raw material fab as part of its strategy to ensure long-term stability of the company’s global supply chain, JinkoSolar (US) Inc.’s General Manager Nigel Cockroft said, “This facility enables the use of raw material inputs from a variety of countries, thus increasing the amount of local content used in our modules, and especially in the modules produced in the Jacksonville, Florida facility.”
Recently, JinkoSolar had some of its solar panels held by the US Customs and Border Protection (CPB), which is authorized to stop all solar products from entering the US if they cannot prove that no Xinjiang produced silicon is used (see US Government Ban On Xinjiang Produced Solar Products).
The Vietnamese route may not be that easy for Chinese manufacturers as JinkoSolar to have better access to the US solar market. The US Department of Commerce might entertain the petition filed by American Solar Manufacturers Against Chinese Circumvention (A-SMACC) to impose higher tariffs on solar modules coming from Malaysia, Vietnam and Thailand (see US Solar Manufacturers File Petitions Against Chinese).
If it does, then the US may see as much as 18 GW less solar deployment by 2023, warned the US Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) (see SEIA Warning On Higher Solar Tariffs).
Nonetheless, JinkoSolar has support of some politicians in the US as Congressman AI Lawson saying, “With this new $500 million announcement, JinkoSolar US is clearly committed to a supply chain that helps realize the energy goals of the Biden Administration.”
JinkoSolar subsidiary
In a related news from the Chinese company, its principal operating subsidiary Jiangxi Jinko expects its 9M/2021 revenues to add up to RMB 23.6 billion and RMB 23.8 million. Net income to its shareholders is likely to be reported between RMB 625 million and RMB 655 million.
Holding a 73.28% stake in Jiangxi Jinko, JinkoSolar has revealed these estimates as part of the mandatory requirement by the Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE) as the parent company gets ready to apply for an initial public offering (IPO) of the former at the Sci-Tech Innovation Board or STAR Market in China (see JinkoSolar & Canadian Solar STAR Listing Plans Update).
JinkoSolar specified that the financial estimates of Jiangxi Jinko are different from the parent company’s consolidated financial results as the latter comprises the performance of all its subsidiaries as well (see JinkoSolar Shipped 4 GW Modules In Q2/2021).
