New York (USA) – 28th August 2023. Translucent Energy Inc. (“TE”) and Suzhou Akcome Optronics Science and Technology Co. Ltd. (“Akcome”) are pleased to announce their strategic partnership to build a 1.2 GW integrated solar modules and cells manufacturing facility in the United States of America, with the aim of producing high performance “Made in America” panels. The planned facility, initially covering an area of over five hundred thousand square feet, will create 500 permanent jobs in Phase 1, and will enter commercial operation in 2025. The panels produced in phase 1 will be from Akcome “iTopper” range, using Topcon (Tunnel Oxide Passivated Contact) technology.
Phase 2 will see the factory expand upstream into ingots and wafers, and increasing its capacity in stages until it reaches 3.6 GW by late 2027. The expanded capacity will be principally in Heterojunction (“HJT”) technology, where Akcome is the leading manufacturer globally in terms of both volume and efficiency. By 2027, the expanded facility will provide over 2000 permanent skilled jobs.
Nour Mousa, Translucent Energy CEO “Akcome is a recognized global leader in the photovoltaic industry, with profound manufacturing and R&D credentials. We are delighted to be working with them to fulfill our US manufacturing plans. As many companies enter the module manufacturing space, inspired by the incentives of the Inflation Reduction Act, the key differentiator will be companies who also produce their own cells and can claim “Made in America” status. With Akcome, we are well prepared to achieve that.”
Zou Chenghui, Chairman of Akcome, said “Akcome recognizes the strategic importance of the US market, and that only companies with local manufacturing operations will be able to compete effectively going forwards. Our partnership with the Translucent team positions us to be a leading player in the US, as their expertise and experience will help us to grow our presence here.”
Mujadid Shah, Chief Strategy Officer at Translucent Energy, added “We have currently shortlisted locations for the facility, and are going through the final negotiations with the States and County authorities. We look forward to announcing the factory location very soon.”
For more information, please visit www.akcomeusa.com
About Translucent Energy: Translucent Energy Inc. (TE) is a U.S. based PV panel importer, distributer and manufacturer, as well as a smart infrastructure system integrator serving residential distributors, commercial and industrial clients and utility-scale developers. The TE team brings together a combined experience of 60 years in PV manufacturing, RE product integration, project development and finance, EPC and O&M contracting.
About Akcome: Zhejiang Akcome New Energy Technology Co. Ltd. (SZ002610) is regularly ranked in the Chinese Top 500 Private Enterprises and Global Top 500 New Energy Enterprises. Akcome has more than 3,500 employees with sales and service networks covering more than 80 countries, as well as over 300 technical patents. By 2023 the company shipped in excess of 15GW of PV panels, reaching 10 GW of panel production capacity and 11.5 GW of cell production capacity this year. Recognized as a Tier 1 manufacturer by Bloomberg NEF, Akcome is the global leader in Heterojunction (“HJT”) technology, and has achieved and average conversion of 25.6% efficiency in its cells. Akcome is publicly traded on the Shenzen stock exchange.
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