Two More U.S. Solar Factories Announced

By Christian Roselund

In January 2023 both Hanwha Q Cells and JA Solar announced plans for new solar factories in the United States, part of the latest wave of public plans following the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Hanwha plans to both expand its module capacity and build a 3.3-gigawatt integrated ingot, wafer, cell, and module factory as its second facility in the state of Georgia. JA Solar intends to build a 2-gigawatt module factory in Arizona.

Together, these plans bring the combination of announcements for U.S. crystalline silicon (c-Si) module production and existing factories to 39.9 gigawatts by 2027 (First Solar’s existing thin film module capacity and announcements for new factories represent another 10.6 gigawatts). The aggregate capacity of cell production announcements is much lower at 13.3 gigawatts, and the aggregate of ingot and wafer is 20.6 gigawatts. These figures for ingot, wafer, and c-Si cell capacity are announcements, as the United States currently has no cell, ingot, or wafer facilities. Given how uneven development is along the value chain, we anticipate that the United States will remain highly dependent on imported PV cells to feed its module factories, as well as production further upstream including polysilicon, ingots, and wafers.

There are many factors that can lead to factories being delayed or cancelled altogether. Additionally, CEA expects future manufacturing plans in addition to what has been announced to date. Therefore, the actual production capacity of solar factories in 2027 is a moving target.

Hanwha: Integrated U.S. Ingot to Module Production

On 11 January 2023 Hanwha Solutions released an investor presentation that laid out its plans for integrated manufacturing in the United States. The company plans to invest $2.49 billion in its new 3.3-gigawatt integrated ingot, wafer, cell, and module facility.

This ingot, wafer, cell and module capacity is much less than the 9 gigawatts of integrated production spelled out in filings to local tax authorities in Texas in August 2022. Regardless, if completed it would become the first operational ingot and wafer facility in the United States since SolarWorld shut its ingot and wafer production in Oregon.

In addition to the integrated production facility, Hanwha also plans to invest $181 million in another 2 gigawatts of module manufacturing on its current factory site in Dalton. When added to the 1.7 gigawatts that the company has online, the 1.4-gigawatt expansion that is currently underway, and the 3.3 gigawatts of module production as part of its integrated facility, Hanwha aims to have 8.4 gigawatts of U.S. module production online by the end of 2024.

The company did not provide a timeline for its integrated ingot, wafer, cell and module production facility. CEA research indicates that it typically takes 2 years to build and fully ramp a cell facility, and 3 ½ years to build an ingot and wafer facility.

Despite the investment in cell capacity in the United States, most of Hanwha’s cells will still come from overseas. The company currently has 10 gigawatts of cell production in China, Malaysia, and South Korea. The additional 3.3 gigawatts of cell production capacity would bring Hanwha’s global capacity to 13.3 gigawatts by the end of 2024. By 2024 the company expects to have 19.1 gigawatts of module capacity. This means that Hanwha will still need to source cells externally to run its module production at full capacity.

Hanwha’s plans to build-out its U.S. PV manufacturing are presented within the context of a strategic move downstream. The company plans to provide installation and financing services for residential rooftop solar, approach commercial & industrial solar using an energy services company (ESCO) business model and move into project development and construction. This leaves questions about how much of Hanwha’s final output will be available for developers not associated with the company.

JA Solar’s First U.S. Factory

On 10 January 2023 Chinese PV maker JA Solar announced that it will invest $60 million to build a module factory in Phoenix, Arizona. The company expects the factory to be operational by the fourth quarter of 2023, and to reach a capacity of 2 gigawatts when fully functional.

JA Solar is one of the largest cell and module makers in the world, and this will be its first U.S. factory. The company currently makes cells and modules in China, Malaysia, and Vietnam, and is building out ingot and wafer capacity as well.

Arizona currently has no manufacturing in the PV value chain. However, the state is seeing investment from battery makers, and PV cell and module maker Meyer Burger has also announced plans to build a 1.5-gigawatt module factory in Goodyear, Arizona.

Source: U.S. Solar Manufacturing Expansion Plan (Hanwha Solutions)

Source: JA Solar Announces First U.S. Solar Module Manufacturing Facility in Phoenix (Arizona Commerce Authority)