China Sunergy inks multiyear silicon ingot deal with Hitachi High-Tech

23 October 2008

Solar-cell manufacturer China Sunergy has signed a multiyear deal with Hitachi High-Technologies for the supply of single-crystal 200-mm silicon ingots. HHT will provide a total volume of 1472 tons of material, the companies said, which will support the production of approximately 210 MW of solar cells during the duration of the contract.

HHT began shipping ingots to China Sunergy in September 2008 and will continue shipments through the end of 2011. While the pricing has been fixed for the 2008 shipments, China Sunergy and HHT said they will negotiate the ongoing price of silicon ingot every three months beginning in 2009, within a predetermined pricing range.

"This long-term partnership with a respected supplier such as HHT allows us to reduce our reliance on obtaining silicon material supplies from the volatile spot market," said Allen Wang, CEO of China Sunergy. "In addition to the high-quality silicon ingot improving our yields and output, I believe there are cost savings to be recognized from this deal, which will contribute to the long-term goal of strengthening our gross margin. We will continue to seek additional agreements with partners like HHT, as they will benefit China Sunergy by providing a reliable source of silicon through a flexible, favorable cost structure."

Nanjing-based China Sunergy announced last month that it will supply 10 MW of monocrystalline cells annually to Wuxi Guofei between 2009 and 2015. The cell manufacturer also signed a multiyear, $400 million wafer supply agreement with REC in June, which will provide the Chinese cell-maker with the Norwegian firm's monocrystalline 156-mm substrates until 2015.

-- Tom Cheyney