Chinese Company To Set Up Solar Cell Plant In AP

In an effort to make Andhra Pradesh a solar-panel manufacturing hub in the country, the Andhra Pradesh government inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with China's Xi'an Longi Silicon Materials Corp for the setting up of a solar module and cell manufacturing plant in the State.

The MoU was signed on Wednesday evening in New Delhi by Longi's Chairman Baoshen Zhong and AP Principal Secretary (Energy, Infrastructure and Investment) Ajay Jain, in the presence of Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu.

Another MoU was signed between Sri City (P) Ltd and Xi'an Longi Silicon Materials Corp.

Xi'an Longi Silicon Materials Corp is amongst the top five global silicon wafer producers, with four production bases in China and three GW of wafer capacity.

The company will invest in a facility for manufacturing solar cells and modules with a capacity of 500 MW at Sri City in the Chittoor district, with an estimated investment of Rs 1,500 crores.

This investment will provide employment to 1,000 people.

Speaking on the occasion, Naidu said, "This is a very good investment from China in Andhra Pradesh. Solar power is the best solution for sustainable economic growth. I want to create a solar manufacturing hub in Andhra Pradesh. The interest in the sector is high, and I'm hopeful that more than 50% of India's manufacturing capacity in the sector will be set up in AP in the long term."

Baoshen Zhong added, "This plant will manufacture state-of-the-art solar modules with higher efficiency than currently available systems. In this way, we are participating in both Make In India as well as Innovate In India. This is just the first step, and I'm sure that we will invest much more and that other companies will follow suit."

This is one of the major investments from a Chinese company in Andhra Pradesh following the visit of the Chief Minister and a delegation from Andhra Pradesh in April this year.

The Chief Minister also elaborated on the opportunities in the capital city region and how Andhra Pradesh was focusing on creating the best ecosystem for the manufacturing sector.