Hanwha Group enters solar power development business
On April 5th, Hanwha Group founded Hanwha SolarEnergy Corporation (“Hanwha SolarEnergy”), which is to be headed by Hyun Chung Kim, who concurrently takes the position of Vice Chairman at Hanwha Engineering & Construction. The establishment of Hanwha SolarEnergy will accelerate Hanwha Group’s globalization of its solar business, by producing over 1GW by 2015 and having an annual production of more than 100MW.
Hanwha SolarEnergy will actively push forward solar development in both domestic and international turfs. Plans being devised include joint operations with local partners, particularly in North America and Europe. Many strategic options are being considered currently, including joint venture and M&A with promising companies.
As a part of this strategy, Hanwha recently signed a strategic partnership with Solar Monkey, a U.S.-based company which is already developing and constructing solar power plants in the United States and Europe. Established in 2006, Solar Monkey is developing solar power business including roof-tops of residential, commercial, and educational facilities, particularly in the United States and Italy. A strategic partnership with a company that has such various experience and technology will provide to be a stepping stone as Hanwha widens its spectrum in the North American and European markets.
Hanwha SolarEnergy had begun a full-scale market search earlier this year in North America and Europe based on a wide variety of networks as such. Vice Chairman Hyun Chung Kim stated, “Hanwha Group is opting for a complete vertical integration in the solar business, from polysilicon to solar power development. When this vertical integration is merged with the Hanwha Finance Network’s experience in the finance sector, the optimal solution for customers to build a solar power generation system will be surely provided.”
Hanwha Group is actively investing in the solar business. Last August, Hanwha Group acquired ‘SolarFun Power Holdings’ a Nasdaq-listed company which ranks 4th in the world solar cell business, and renamed it Hanwha SolarOne. Hanwha SolarOne is planning to expand its cell and module production facilities which are currently 500MW and 900MW each to 1.3GW and 1.5GW by the end of this year. A cell and module facilities will be added in the Nantong Economic and Technological Development Area. Within the two-step plan for 2GW production capacity, the first step, of 1GW, will be completed by the end of 2012. Last March, Hanwha Group established the solar R&D center, Hanwha Solar America, in the Silicon Valley. This completed a solar R&D network encompassing Korea, China, and America.
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