United Solar Holdings, the parent company of USP, was founded in 2023 by founder and chairman Longgen Zhang, former CEO of Chinese polysilicon producer Daqo New Energy. The company, headquartered in the Middle East at Oman’s port and free zone in Sohar, has drawn up plans for a factory with a capacity to produce 100,000 tonnes of solar polysilicon per year – enough to cover around 40 GW per year of PV module production.
The plant produced its first polysilicon in early 2026 and USP aims to have the plant running at full capacity by the end of the year, with an official inauguration planned for April. This was said by Binyam Giorgis, financial director of the USP pv magazine “It is the largest solar plant we know of outside China, and is designed to be best-in-class in terms of efficiency and cost competitiveness.”
USP has raised $1.6 billion to finance the plant, including $480 million in long-term debt from International Finance Corp., more than $400 million in debt and working capital facilities from several local banks, and an investment of approximately $260 million from the Oman Investment Authority (OIA)’s Future Fund, a sovereign wealth fund – making OIA the project’s largest investor.
Construction of the facility took approximately 22 months, with equipment and materials shipped from around the world. It will produce polysilicon via a version of the Siemens process, using equipment and processes licensed from suppliers in China.
The polysilicon supply, like the rest of the solar supply chain, has long been dominated by China, which has implemented large-scale production and achieved major cost savings. However, some other regions are restricting imports from China and implementing supply chain traceability measures, causing buyers to look for alternatives. And these are the markets where USP expects to find demand. “Our strategy is to diversify our market as much as possible, especially by building relationships in India and the US, and ensure that demand comes from at least three or four different markets,” Giorgis said.
The plant is now in the testing phase and Giorgis reports that it meets all quality and purity requirements and expects to be cost competitive with other non-Chinese polysilicon suppliers.
“Chinese players will have some cost advantages because the whole ecosystem there is well established. But the right framework is how we compare to others outside China that are traceable. And in that context I think we are in a good position,” he said.
Giorgis explained that the plant was designed to meet the requirements of most international polysilicon markets, including the Foreign Entity of Concern (FEOC) regulations being introduced in the United States, and the high environmental, social and governance (ESG) standards required by many European and other markets. The factory will not discharge any liquids into the environment, and although the Omani electricity grid that powers the factory runs mainly on gas, Giorgis said there are plans to build a solar power plant on the site to meet at least some of the energy demand. “It meets all ESG, size, cost competitiveness and FEOC compliance requirements, meaning we can serve most regions including the US, India and Europe,” he said.
American uncertainty
Meeting FEOC requirements is largely a matter of ensuring the supply of metallurgical-grade polysilicon and other inputs from outside China. However, for the US market, the outcome of a trade investigation into the import of polysilicon is still undecided pv magazine going to press – asks a more difficult question. Outcomes could range from tariffs to a complete ban on all polysilicon imports, although the fact that the United States does not have sufficient polysilicon capacity to match domestic module production means that any restrictions introduced will likely come with exceptions for specific suppliers or regions. “It’s hard to make plans when there’s no goalpost to aim for, but we are prepared for different outcomes,” Giorgis said, adding that Oman’s friendly relations with the United States and its factory in a free trade zone should mitigate some of that risk. “We have seen that this administration prefers bilateral agreements with different countries, so maybe this is where this is going.”
Indian module manufacturer Waaree Energies, through its US subsidiary Waaree Americas, completed a $30 million investment in USP in late January 2026. It also has an offtake agreement for the Oman-made polysilicon to support Waaree’s global solar manufacturing activities, and in particular US operations,” according to a December 2025 Waaree announcement.
Global markets
Giorgis confirmed that USP has entered into other supply agreements with manufacturers in the United States, India and Southeast Asia. “Those customers are primarily tier-one manufacturers. They are testing and qualifying our product, or they will very soon,” he said.
Besides China and the United States, India is likely to be the largest source of polysilicon demand in the coming years. The country’s solar energy production has grown rapidly, and although domestic polysilicon plants are under development, imports will likely be needed to meet demand in the near future. Giorgis said USP has relationships in India, as illustrated by the partnership with Waaree, and is also working to establish new relationships.
Several countries in Southeast Asia have significant solar energy production capacity, which is mainly operated by Chinese companies that establish themselves there to serve markets with restrictions on Chinese imports. And while previous trade investigations have imposed high tariffs on imports from these countries into the United States, a supply of non-China polysilicon could still be useful to them in serving other markets.
Future potential
Other regions currently have little demand for polysilicon from solar energy, but do have solar production plans in the works. USP wants to be ready to serve these if the opportunity arises. On its doorstep, the Middle East has installed solar power on a large scale, and while multiple conflicts are bringing uncertainty to the region, Giorgis hopes it will also become a larger manufacturing market. “We need to see more activity to boost domestic production, for us and for others establishing themselves in the region. But it is a significant market that could be very good for us,” he said, further noting that USP has the ability, as well as the land and infrastructure available in Oman, to expand into ingot, wafer or cell production if the economics start to make sense.
Europe tells a similar story, with solar close to the center of its energy plans and some desire for a restart of domestic production, but few projects currently in development that are likely to become a major buyer of polysilicon. But USP wants to be ready to serve any market looking to diversify its polysilicon offering. “The fact that we meet the highest ESG standards, the FEOC compliance, all of that just opens up the number of markets that are available to us. We want to be able to meet all the regulations in each of these markets,” he said. “This is the largest production site outside China. With a production capacity of 100,000 tons, we have the scale to create resilience for the rest of the world.”
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