Solar-grade crystalline silicon wafer maker Sino-American Silicon Products (SAS) plans to expand its annual production capacity for monocrystalline silicon solar cells by 350MWp from 500MWp currently to 850MWp in 2015 and is likely to set up the additional capacity in either the US or Germany if the US Department of Commerce and International Trade Commission (ITC) in December 2014 and January 2015, respectively, maintain final anti-dumping tariff rates at an average of 24.23% on Taiwan-produced solar cells or PV modules, according to company president Doris Hsu at a November 17 investors conference.
SAS has extended production to monocrystalline silicon solar cells through merger with its subsidiary maker Sunrise Global Solar Energy. Sunrise Global has an annual production capacity of 500MWp, of which 350MWp has been transformed to a PERC (passivated emitter and rear cell) process to hike energy conversion rates to an average of 20.5% currently and further to an expected level of over 21% in 2015.
Viewing that the US is a large PV market with a total capacity of PV systems installed and to be installed in 2014 estimated at 7GWp and 9GWp in 2015, SAS may set up planned additional capacity based on a PERC process in Germany or the US to specifically avoid high US anti-dumping tariffs, Hsu said. SAS' Germany-based PV module maker Aleo Solar has three factories while GlobalWafers, SAS' subsidiary for semiconductor-grade silicon wafers has factories in the US, these are alternative locations for setting up the additional capacity, Hsu indicated.
SAS currently has an annual production capacity of 800MWp for solar-grade crystalline silicon wafers and plans to expand the capacity by about 300MWp in 2015, with the additional capacity to be dedicated to production of A5+ models with energy conversion rates of over 19%, Hsu said. SAS plans to launch A5+ in 2015, Hsu noted.
