Hanwha Q CELLS Opens First Regional Headquarters in Honam Area

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] Hanwha Q CELLS opened its first regional headquarters in Chipyeong-dong, Seo-gu, Gwangju Metropolitan City on the 3rd. With the opening of the Gwangju Regional Headquarters, Hanwha Q CELLS plans to expand sales of high-quality solar modules in the Honam region and actively carry out solar power plant EPC (Engineering, Procurement, and Construction) and development projects.

Hanwha Q CELLS Gwangju Regional Headquarters is located a 15-minute drive from KTX Gwangju Songjeong Station and has excellent accessibility, being within a 10-minute walk to major government offices such as the city hall and courthouse. Hanwha Q CELLS plans to use the Gwangju Regional Headquarters as a workspace for employees and for meetings with client companies.

The reason Hanwha Q CELLS opened a regional headquarters in Gwangju is due to the high solar power installation volume in the Honam region. As of the end of 2019, the cumulative solar power installation capacity in the Honam region was a total of 7GW (gigawatts), accounting for about 30% of the national total installation capacity. This figure surpasses the combined installation capacity of Seoul, Gyeonggi, and Incheon, which is about 11%, and also exceeds the combined capacity of Chungcheong Province, which is about 20.2%. Going forward, the Honam region is expected to see continuous growth in existing land-based solar power, as well as expansion in solar power projects such as agrivoltaics, which combine farming with solar power generation, and solar projects utilizing idle lands like reclaimed land.

So far, Hanwha Q CELLS has actively supplied the core product lineup that achieved the No. 1 market share in advanced renewable energy markets such as the United States, Germany, and Japan to the domestic market, thereby increasing consumer satisfaction. As a result, from 2018 for three consecutive years, it was selected as a 'Global Best Company' at the Korea Consumer Awards hosted by the Korea Consumer Association. In 2019, it also received the Presidential Citation at the 16th Korea New Growth Management Awards in recognition of its pioneering overseas markets based on high technology and product competitiveness and its contribution to domestic job creation.

Moreover, Hanwha Q CELLS has strived to maximize product quality. In May last year, it was selected as a 'Top Performer' company for the fifth consecutive year in the '2020 Solar Module Reliability Evaluation' conducted by global professional verification organizations DNV GL and PVEL.

Also, in December last year, it became the first in the industry to obtain certification in a new solar module quality inspection devised by the global verification institution TUV Rheinland. This inspection tests quality under conditions up to three times harsher than international quality inspection standards.

Yoo Jae-yeol, head of Hanwha Q CELLS Korea M&S Division, stated, "Through the opening of the Gwangju Regional Headquarters, we will strengthen ties with local customers and carry out efficient sales activities," adding, "We will actively supply products with globally recognized brands and technologies to contribute to raising the quality standards of solar products in the Honam region."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.