Hanwha Solutions bets big on giant solar cell-making machine

Industry

Published: 13 Oct. 2022, 16:43 Updated: 13 Oct. 2022, 17:58

Hanwha Solutions bets big on giant solar cell-making machine

The Hanwha Solutions solar cell production plant in Jincheon, North Chungcheong, Wednesday. [SHIN HA-NEE]

JINCHEON, North Chungcheong — A shiny metallic square about half the size of an A4 sheet of paper goes into an automated production line the length of three football fields and comes out the other end as sapphire-hued solar cell.

Hanwha Solutions is betting big that the contraption will be just the thing to help it beat Chinese competitors, which dominate the global market, and remain a leader in the solar cell business.

"The biggest challenge we now face is about how we are going to set ourselves apart from the Chinese rivals on the global scale,” said Kim Eun-sik, head of Asia manufacturing at the solar division of Hanwha Solutions.

Hanwha Solutions is No. 1 in the United States in terms of solar cell market share and No. 9 globally, according to a report from PVTech Research.

On Sept. 7, the company pledged to invest over 760 billion won ($533.4 million) in the local solar energy business, with 180 billion won allocated for boosting production capacity. Of the 180-billion-won investment, 130 billion won will be spent on setting up TOPCon production lines at the company's Jincheon plant, North Chungcheong.

TOPCon, short for tunnel oxide passivated contact, is a next-generation solar cell. With an oxide layer between silicon wafers, they are more powerful and more efficient than traditional PERC cells, which currently dominate the market.

According to Hanwha Solutions, its TOPCon cells are 24.4 percent efficient, 1 percentage point higher than PREC cells.

Hanwha Q Cells, the solar division of Hanwha Solutions, aims to start mass production of TOPCon solar cells in April 2023. Pilot production started in November last year, with annual capacity of 300 megawatts, at the Jincheon plant.

Inside the Hanwha Q Cells Jincheon plant, few workers can be seen other than those replacing equipment. Carrier robots zoom around the factory floor, lights blinking.

Solar cells at the Hanwha Solutions factory in Jincheon, North Chungcheong [SHIN HA-NEE]

The thin, square silicon wafers are stacked in small piles ready for the long journey down the solar cell-making machine.

In the machine, the surface of the wafers is textured for better absorption of solar radiation, then chemicals are applied, including synthetic sapphire.

From April next year, the plant will be producing 3.9-gigawatts of PERC cells and 1.5-gigawatt TOPCon cells a year.

Beijing’s JA Solar Technology has already introduced TOPCon cells, and other Chinese companies are reporting commercial output of TOPCon products.

“To be honest, we were two to three years behind our competitors in developing TOPCon cells,” said Seo Se-young, head of Hanwha Solution’s solar research and development division. “But in terms of power conversion efficiency, our performance is on par with — or even better than — the competing products.”

The next step after TOPCon will be tandem cells, which could achieve 35 percent efficiency. Hanwha Solutions aims to begin tandem solar cell production in June 2026.

With the passing of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) in the United States in August, Hanwha Solutions is pushing to strengthen its foothold in the country. Under the IRA, the tax credit for solar is increased and domestically made cells get a tax credit 10 percentage points higher than imported cells.

The company said that it expects solar panel exports from the Jincheon plant to reach 2 trillion won next year from 1.7 trillion won this year.

A bird's eye view of the Hanwha Solutions Jincheon plant in North Chungcheong [HANWHA SOLUTIONS]

Hanwha Q Cells is running a 1.7-gigawatt solar module factory in Georgia, and it plans to invest 200 billion won in the plant next year to expand production capacity by 1.4 gigawatts to 3.1 gigawatts.

On Sept. 23, Hanwha Solutions said that it will streamline its business portfolio with a focus on solar energy. Only three divisions will remain: the Q Cells solar energy unit, the chemicals unit and a local solar energy business development unit specializing in domestic projects.

In 2021, Korea produced solar cells with a generation capacity of 4.4 gigawatts, down from the previous year's 4.7 gigawatts, according to the Energy Ministry.

“The solar panel supply rate basically translates into market competitiveness,” said Jeong Gyu-chang, head of the company's communication team.

Jeong emphasized that more renewable energy capacity is needed for Korean RE100 companies to hit their carbon-reduction goals.

"Enhancing competitiveness in exports is important, but domestic demand is just as crucial," added Jeong.

BY SHIN HA-NEE [shin.hanee@joongang.co.kr]