Walsin Lihwa to Build a Mega Solar-Energy Silicon Wafer Plant in Jiangsu

Taipei, Jan. 14, 2011 (CENS)--Walsin Lihwa Group will invest US$500 million (NT$15 billion) to build a solar-energy silicon wafer plant in Changzhou of Jiangsu Province with capacity of 2.5GW, the largest among Taiwanese-invested solar-energy silicon wafer plants.

The project is another major inroads of the company, a leading wire and cable maker in Taiwan, into the realm of green energy, following spending of NT$1.72 billion to buy into Solarion AG of Germany, a thin-film solar cell maker, as well as the plan to build up a poly silicon factory in Changhua coastal industrial zone, in northern Taiwan, at cost of NT$10 billion. The latest project will enable the company to form a complete solar-energy supply chain.

The projected plant is expected to generate annual revenue topping 15 billion yuan, when fully completed. Its capacity, at 2.5GW, will beat Green Energy at 1.5 GW and Sino American Silicon Products Inc. at 800 MW, the largest Taiwanese-invested solar-energy silicon wafer plants at present, both located in Taiwan. It is also much larger than a solar-energy silicon wafer plant being built by Solargiga Energy Holdings, an affiliate of Wafer Works, in China, whose capacity is expected to reach 800 MW by the end of this year.

The project will be carried out in two stages, with investment reaching US$200 million for capacity of 1 GW in the first stage and US$300 million in the second stage for the expansion of the capacity to 2.5 GW.