South Korean conglomerate Hanwha Group will start producing high-efficient monocrystalline solar modules that could become a game-changer in solar power industry starting next year.

According to government and solar energy industry sources on Wednesday, Hanwha Group will build next-generation monocrystalline solar module production lines in Jincheon, North Chungcheong Province, central Korea, where its subsidiary Hanwha Q Cells Co. is based.

The new solar module’s energy-generation efficiency is higher by more than 11 percent compared to the conventional solar panels. Once completed within the year, the plant will be able to produce monocrystalline cells capable of generating 600-megawatt electricity, or enough to power 200,000 households a year.

It is reported that Hanwha will construct additional solar panel lines in Jincheon to produce 1,000-megawatt monocrystalline solar modules after 2018, said a solar industry source who asked to be unnamed. With the new addition, the company’s high-efficient solar cell production capacity will reach 1,600 megawatts.

An unnamed Hanwha official confirmed that the company is planning commercialization of monocrystalline solar modules and the plan is being fine-tuned by the group.

The monocrystalline solar modules are solar storage made of highly pure solar cells. They are considered to have higher efficiency in electricity generation compared to the conventional polycrystalline solar modules.

The sunlight conversion rate for the monocrystalline solar modules is around 21.5 percent while that of the conventional polycrystalline solar modules is between 17 and 18 percent. The company claims that the monocrystalline solar panels will be able to boost the electricity production output by 11 percent compared to the previous solar modules.

By Kim Jung-hwan

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