China-based Tongwei builds another 25,000-ton polysilicon plant

After announcing the construction of a new polysilicon plant with an annual production capacity of 25,000 metric tons (MT) at the site of its subsidiary Sichuan Yongxiang in Leshan in March, China-based Tongwei Group is planning to build another 25,000 MT polysilicon plant in Baotou, Inner Mongolia by 2018.

With the new plant, Tongwei intends to challenge OCI and Wacker in the field of high-quality polysilicon for monocrystalline solar cells. While Tongwei still has to prove this claim, South Korean OCI could soon be in a difficult place if the Chinese Ministry of Commerce (Mofcom) raises the duties on polysilicon imports from South Korea in November. Tongwei's expansion and GCL-Poly’s new polysilicon project in Xinjiang make this appear more likely.