Hanwha Q CELLS-MS Signs Largest Ever Solar Module Contract in the US

Follow-up Achievements Since January Last Year MOU
Lee Gu-Young "Expanding Capabilities in Renewable Energy Business"

Hanwha Solutions Q CELLS division has signed a long-term solar partnership with Microsoft (MS) for a total of 12GW. This is the largest module supply contract ever among solar partnerships in the United States. The agreement also includes comprehensive engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) services for power plants.

On the 9th, Hanwha Q CELLS announced that it will provide at least 1.5GW of modules and EPC services annually for eight years from 2025 to 2032 to solar power plants from which MS will purchase electricity. This contract is a follow-up that expands the strategic partnership the two companies signed in January last year.

The total scale has significantly increased from the initial 2.5GW to 12GW. The 12GW capacity can produce electricity for approximately 1.8 million households in the U.S., accounting for about 60% of the newly installed solar power capacity nationwide (approximately 21GW) in 2022.

Hanwha Q CELLS Dalton Plant, Georgia, USA
[Photo by Hanwha Q CELLS]

MS plans to actively use modules manufactured in the U.S. to support the domestic green energy industry while continuously increasing its renewable energy usage through stable module supply.

The company aims to achieve RE100 by 2025 and reach its sustainability goal of becoming 'carbon negative' by 2030. Bobby Hollis, Vice President of MS, said, "This agreement with Hanwha Q CELLS will not only add more renewable energy but also foster the green energy industry in the U.S. and support the establishment of the solar value chain."

The U.S. solar market is expected to continue growing, driven by industrial efforts to reduce carbon emissions and strong policy support. Global market research firm Wood Mackenzie forecasts U.S. solar installation demand to increase to 36GW in 2024, 39.5GW in 2025, 40GW in 2026, and 42GW in 2027.

Hanwha Q CELLS plans to target the U.S. solar market based on its ‘Solar Hub,’ the largest and only integrated solar production base in North America. The recently expanded Dalton plant in Georgia has an annual module production capacity of 5.1GW. Additionally, the Cartersville plant currently under construction is expected to begin mass production of 3.3GW each of ingots, wafers, cells, and modules after its completion in 2024. Once the Cartersville plant is fully operational by the end of next year, Hanwha Q CELLS will become the first company in North America to secure a core solar value chain and hold the largest silicon-based module manufacturing capacity in the region.

Hanwha Q CELLS' 168MW solar power plant in Texas, USA, constructed in 2021 [Photo by Hanwha Q CELLS]

With the full operation of the U.S. plants, the amount of Advanced Manufacturing Production Credit (AMPC) benefits applied at each stage of ingot-wafer-cell-module production is expected to increase more than threefold compared to last year. Yu Jin Jeon, a researcher at Hi Investment & Securities, said, "In addition to the currently operating 5GW modules in the U.S., if the 3.3GW wafer-cell-module plant is additionally operated by the end of 2024, the AMPC amount is expected to expand to 1 trillion KRW annually." Lee Dong Wook, a researcher at IBK Investment & Securities, also stated, "Hanwha Q CELLS’ AMPC, which was about 90 billion KRW in Q4 last year, is expected to increase more than threefold to 286.7 billion KRW per quarter (based on current exchange rates) when the U.S. plants are fully operational."

Lee Gu Young, CEO of Hanwha Q CELLS, emphasized, "In line with the explosively growing global industrial demand for green energy, we will strengthen our solar manufacturing capabilities and comprehensively expand our capacity to execute large-scale renewable energy projects. We will continue to strengthen cooperation with global companies and actively supply eco-friendly energy solutions."

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