South Korea’s OCI Holdings is entering the solar wafer business with a majority stake in a $120 million wafer plant in Vietnam. The facility will produce solar wafers for the US market.
South Korean polysilicon producer OCI Holdings is expanding into the solar wafer market by acquiring a majority stake in a wafer factory in Vietnam.
The company, through its wholly owned subsidiary OCI TerraSus, established special purpose vehicle OCI ONE, which acquired a 65% stake in a 2.7 GW wafer plant currently under construction by Elite Solar Power Wafer Co. Ltd.
The solar wafer production facility, which is scheduled to be ready by the end of the month, is expected to start producing non-prohibited foreign entities (PFEs) early next year. The non-PFE status allows the solar wafers to bypass the US import restrictions linked to a number of foreign supply chains.
The total investment in the plant amounts to $120 million, with OCI ONE’s stake valued at approximately $78 million. According to a statement published by OCI Holdings, the plant’s capacity could increase to 5.4 GW within six months if a further $40 million is invested.
The plant will be fully supplied with polysilicon from OCI TerraSus, which, according to OCI’s statement, will achieve full vertical integration aimed at increasing both competitiveness and profitability.
Woo Hyun Lee, chairman of OCI Holdings, said the investment brings the company closer to building a supply chain that enables U.S. exports. “We will continue to strengthen our presence in the global solar market by promoting partnerships with local companies in Southeast Asia,” the chairman added.
In August, South Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy urged the U.S exempt to protect companies from polysilicon tariffs, warning restrictions could disrupt $2.8 billion in U.S. solar investment.
OCI and Japanese chemical company Tokuyama Corporation recently started construction of a 10,000-ton polysilicon plant at the Samalaju Industrial Park in Sarawak, Borneo, Malaysia.
OCIM Sdn Bhd (OCIMSB), the Malaysian unit of OCI, currently operates a 35,000 tonne polysilicon plant in the Samalaju Industrial Park in Sarawak, Malaysia, which it acquired from Tokuyama in 2016.
With this plant, the group’s total annual polysilicon production – including the 3,000-ton plant in Gunsan, South Korea – currently stands at 38,000 tons.
In August 2024, Tokuyama signed an agreement with Thanh Binh Phu My JSC to build a $30 million polysilicon factory at the Phu My 3 Industrial Park in Vietnam’s Ba Ria-Vung Tau province.
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