Electronics manufacturer Foxconn Technology Group (Taipei, Taiwan) plans to complete the first 400 MW phase of a solar photovoltaic (PV) module factory in China's Jiangsu Province in time to begin pilot production in May 2012, according to a statement by government officials in Funing County, Jiangsu Province.

The manufacturing facility is one of two that the company is currently building, with the other located in Jiangxi Province, and a third project in Shanxi Province currently on hold. Analysts with Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF, New York, New York, U.S.) have warned that Foxconn plans to build PV factories of enormous scale and low costs, further driving down PV industry margins.

"Four reputable and efficient construction units were invited to take part in the project through a selective bidding process; by December 13th, they completed construction roads throughout the plant area, and since then have already finished 4000 meters of pile foundation work," read the statement by Funing County.

"The overall planning and specific regulatory plans for Foxconn Industrial Park are completed, and will soon be submitted to a panel of experts for review."

Foxconn achieves low margins

Foxconn is known for assembling Apple's iPhone and iPad, as well as for a business model of tight margins and large-scale production. BNEF notes that Foxconn achieved a gross margin of 5.6% in the first two quarters of 2011, down from 6.8% a year prior.

First phase to represent USD 1.6 billion investment

The first phase, comprising 400 MW of PV cell and module capacity, will represent an estimated investment of USD 1.6 billion.

Funing County officials state that the industrial park's first, second and third-phase site layout plan and landscape design have been completed, along with foundation planning for three factory buildings, a power station, transformer station, cafeteria, and other supporting structures.

Foxconn to build 300 MW PV plant

In September 2011, Foxconn announced plans to first build a 300 MW PV plant before it begins construction on its PV manufacturing facility in Datong, Shanxi Province. This PV plant would be much larger than any such plant currently in operation in China or the rest of the world.

The Datong project is a joint effort with GCL-Poly New Energy Holdings Ltd. (Hong Kong, China), and includes plans for multiple aspects of PV production from polysilicon production to PV module manufacturing on one site.

In September 2011 Foxconn predicted that the complex will require a total investment of USD 14 billion, with GCL-Poly responsible for developing polysilicon production at the site.

2011-12-28| Courtesy: Government of Funing County, China | solarserver.com © Heindl Server GmbH

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