QCells wins 2GW solar panel deal for US community solar farms

Hanwha Q Cell Co., better known as QCells in overseas markets, has signed a solar panel supply and partnership agreement for energy storage system (ESS) management with Summit Ridge Energy (SRE), the largest US solar company, Hanwha Solutions Corp. said on Friday.

The agreement marked its largest-ever supply deal for US community solar projects. Community solar refers to a project where residents pool or borrow money to build a solar power plant for their communities. 

Under the contract, QCells will supply solar panels needed to generate 2 gigawatts (GW) of power to SRE by 2027. They will be installed at community solar farms across the US.

The deal size is bigger than their initial agreement signed last year, under which QCells agreed to supply solar panels needed for 1.2 GW to SRE.

The contract was announced in April of last year, when US Vice President Kamala Harris visited QCells’ solar panel plant in Dalton, Georgia.

The deal between Hanwha and SRE also includes the supply of equipment and components needed to build ESS and energy management system software used to manage ESS.

Write to Hyung-Kyu Kim at khk@hankyung.com

Yeonhee Kim edited this article.