Hanwha Solutions eyes mass production of tandem solar cells in 2026

Hanwha Solutions announced on October 13 that it will begin commercial production of TOPCon cells, which are more energy efficient than existing PERC cells, from April 2023 and begin mass production of perovskite-based tandem cells at from June 2026.

According to the company, PERC cells, which currently account for more than 90% of the global solar power market, increase the efficiency of power generation by reflecting light off the reflective film inserted at the back. The average efficiency is around 23%. In contrast, TOPCon cells have a thin oxide film inside, which increases power generation efficiency by about one percentage point compared to other cells. The efficiency of the company’s prototype is around 24.4%.

If a cell’s efficiency increases, power generation can increase without expanding the module’s installation area, the company says.

Hanwha Solutions has been operating a TOPCon cell pilot production line with an annual capacity of 300MW since November last year. In May, it announced a plan to expand cell production capacity at its Korean plant from 4.5 GW to 5.4 GW per year by investing a total of 180 billion won. Of the investment funds, 130 billion won will be used for line conversions and the introduction of facilities for the mass production of TOPCon cells. Thus, from April next year, it will be able to produce 3.9 GW PERC cells and 1.5 GW TOPCon cells per year.

Hanwha Q CELLS plans to expand its sales in the US solar market, which is expected to grow 20-30% annually, with TOPCon cells. Industry insiders expect solar power exports from the company’s factory in Jincheon, North Chungcheong Province, to exceed 2 trillion won next year, from about 1.7 trillion won this year. Hanwha Q CELLS will benefit from the passage of the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which aims to promote the US renewable energy market by providing benefits to solar and wind power generation companies.

Hanwha Q Cells is also carrying out R&D activities with the aim of mass-producing perovskite-based tandem cells, a next-generation cell after TOPCon cells, in June 2026. In March, it developed a tandem cell with efficiency maximum of 28.7% in cooperation with Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) from Germany.

A tandem cell connects an upper cell and a lower cell. In the upper cell, the perovskite absorbs short wavelength light such as ultraviolet or visible light and in the lower cell the silicon absorbs long wavelength light such as infrared. In this way, efficiency is maximized by absorbing light from different domains into the top and bottom layers complementary to each other.