Hanwha Solutions' module plant in the U.S. state of Georgia / Courtesy of Hanwha Solutions

By Kim Hyun-bin

Hanwha Solutions is considering scaling up its planned investment in the U.S. to solidify its status as top solar module manufacturer in the world's largest renewable energy market, according to company officials Thursday. The expanded investment appears to be the will of company President Kim Dong-kwan, who has been leading Hanwha's eco-friendly business drive.

The company is reviewing the expansion of its investment in its U.S. photovoltaic plant construction plan that was announced in May. The selection of a site is already in progress. Earlier, the company announced that it would invest around 200 billion won ($152.5 million) to build a 1.4-gigawatt (GW) solar module plant in the U.S.

If the actual investment is scaled up, it will secure a module production capacity of at least 3.1GW and become the largest manufacturer in the region. In addition, the company also made an equity investment of about 250 billion won in REC Silicon, a local polysilicon manufacturer, so it can obtain more polysilicon that is used in solar panels.

"As the U.S. is an important market for our solar business, we are continually reviewing the possibility of investment," a Hanwha Solutions official said.

Hanwha Solutions President Kim Dong-kwan

The reason why Hanwha Solutions is considering expanding its investment is that it has recently become clear that the U.S. will pass the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act. The bill includes the provision of a large-scale investment of more than $369 billion over 10 years for the U.S. climate response and related supply chain development.

The bill is expected to pass the House and Senate as early as this month. As a result, Korean companies that have made eco-friendly investments in solar power, electric vehicles and batteries in the U.S. are expected to benefit greatly. Analysts believe Hanwha Solutions will receive more than 1 trillion won in tax breaks.

In the second quarter of this year, Hanwha Solutions' renewable energy sales increased 22.6 percent from the same period the year before to 1.23 trillion won, and its operating profit was 35.2 billion won, going into the black for the first time in seven quarters.

Hanwha Solutions is also making large-scale investments in Korea to secure next-generation solar technology. About 180 billion won will be invested to establish a new cell line using Topcon technology.

Topcon is a product that increases power generation efficiency by about 1 percentage point compared to the previous model by inserting a thin oxide film into the cell produced on an N-type wafer.