:)

Korea, US agree to forge closer economic ties
https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/tech/2022/05/129_329598.html
MAY 22, 2022
“..
After the bilateral talks, Lee and Raimondo co-hosted a business roundtable meeting with executives from companies in Korea and the U.S. to demonstrate the importance of the trade and investment relationship between the two countries.

The roundtable meeting featured 16 companies related to semiconductors, batteries, clean energy and digital sectors. In Korea, the chiefs of eight companies including Samsung, Hyundai Motor, SK, LG, Lotte, Hanwha, OCI and Naver participated while the U.S. side included executives from Applied Materials, Bloom Energy, GM Korea, Google, Lam Research, Qualcomm, Corning and GE.

The company executives and chiefs of business organizations here were also invited to President Yoon Suk-yeol's welcome dinner for Biden, held at the National Museum of Korea in Seoul on Saturday evening.

The business lobby groups in Korea gave positive responses to the meeting, saying Korea and the U.S. have developed bilateral relations into an economic security alliance.

"We strongly support the Korea-U.S. economic security alliance, and the business community will do its best to strengthen the economic cooperation between Korea and the U.S," the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry said in a statement.

The Federation of Korean Industries (FKI) also released a statement saying, "We welcome the upgrade of the Korea-U.S. alliance to a 'comprehensive strategic alliance' that covers security, the economy and supply chains."

An official from a local conglomerate said, "We hope that the meetings of economic figures between the two countries will further boost cooperation and resolve the various uncertainties facing the global economy."
..”

Polestar investerer i StoreDot
https://media.polestar.com/global/en/media/pressreleases/652639/polestar-invests-in-extreme-fast-charging-battery-company-storedot-unlocks-access-to-advanced-batter?utm_campaign=NewsAlert_12061&utm_medium=Email&utm_source=media.polestar.com

StoreDot bruker teknologi fra Group14
https://group14.technology/en/news/storedot-and-group14-technologies-partner-to-enhance-extreme-fast-charging

Hanwha Group to invest US$3.3bn in clean energy over next five years, looking to establish solar R&D hub in South Korea

South Korean conglomerate Hanwha Group has said it will invest US$3.3 billion in solar and wind technology and intends to create a solar R&D hub in Korea as part of a massive investment strategy focused on several industrial areas.

Parent company of module manufacturer Qcells, Hanwha Group will invest a total of KRW37.6 trillion (US$29.7 billion) over the next five years, including KRW20 trillion (US$15.8 billion) in domestic industries such as energy, carbon neutrality, defence and aerospace.

Hanwha said that in uncertain times, “the competitive advantage of existing businesses is further strengthened” and that it was “necessary to invest in future technology” to lead the market.

The Seoul-headquartered company plans to invest around US$3.3 billion in clean energy manufacturing in South Korea, aiming to establish a solar R&D hub in the country and build “up-to-date production facilities to grow Korea into a ‘global core base’ that can produce high-efficiency solar products”.

It also intends to “expand the business area for energy development that combines solar and wind power”.

“Through these investments, we are determined to further solidify our status as an eco-friendly energy supply base in the international environment where the need for ‘energy security’ is growing,” Hanwha said in a statement.

Indeed, recently rebranded Hanwha subsidiary Qcells is preparing itself for a competitive future market environment, investing in expanded manufacturing capacities and new solar cell structures, its CEO Justin Lee told reporters at this month’s Intersolar event in Munich.

Hanwha earlier this month confirmed a US$320 million investment into expanding its solar cell and module production facilities in Korea and the US respectively, with an extra 900MW of cell capacity and 1.4GW of module capacity set to come onstream from H1 2023. Once online, Qcells will be responsible for around one-third of the US’ total solar module production capacity.

The huge scale of this total investment is nothing new, however, with the group investing close to the same amount (KRW22.6 trillion) in its operations – both home and abroad – over the previous five years.

https://www.pv-tech.org/south-korean-conglomerate-hanwha-group-has-said-it-will-invest-us3-3-billion-in-solar-and-wind-technology-and-intends-to-create-a-solar-rd-hub-in-korea-as-part-of-a-massive-investment-strategy-focus/

Hanwha er på offensiven på mange av sine områder:

I forbindelse med gasskonferansen World Gas Conference 2022, som blir arrangert i Daegu i Sør-Korea, har TotalEnergies inngått en salgs- og kjøpsavtale (SPA) med det sør-koreanske selskapet Hanwha Energy Corporation for levering av 600.000 tonn flytende naturgass (LNG) pr. år over 15 år, med start i 2024.

https://finansavisen.no/nyheter/energi/2022/05/24/7871671/totalenergies-inngar-langsiktig-lng-avtale

23 May, 2022

A decade into tariffs, US solar manufacturing is still deep in Asia's shadow

This summer, Convalt Energy Inc. expects to break ground on a solar panel factory in upstate New York costing more than $500 million.

Once construction is underway, the company will start gathering permits to expand into manufacturing silicon ingots, wafers and cells — the building blocks of solar panels whose production is now largely controlled by China, Convalt Chairman, President and CEO Hari Achuthan said.

The plan is just the sort of endeavor the U.S. Department of Energy has called for to jumpstart an American solar supply chain and begin freeing the industry from Beijing.

An integrated factory complex like the one Achuthan has in mind could spark demand for American polysilicon, a key raw material in most solar panels, and ease broader dependence on supply chains linked to China, the DOE said in a February report.

If built, it would be a rare win for U.S. solar manufacturing. America relies almost entirely on factories in Asia for the components it needs to turn sunlight into electricity. As of February, most U.S. polysilicon factories had been idled or repurposed to supply the semiconductor industry, according to the DOE. The country had no active ingot, wafer or cell capacity, and little panel assembly.

China, meanwhile, accounts for between 70% and 98% of the world’s production capacity of the silicon-based raw material and components in solar panels.

The dominance of solar companies closely tied to China poses "significant risk" to the U.S. market, according to the DOE, due to Beijing's "documented human rights violations and ... unpredictable trade relationship with the United States." Russia's invasion of Ukraine has further amplified concerns about energy security and China's dominance of critical supply chains.

Beijing has denied committing human rights abuses. The Chinese Embassy in Washington did not respond to a message seeking comment.

Despite bipartisan concerns, Washington has been unwilling to provide targeted incentives for projects like Convalt's. Instead, the U.S. government has subsidized project development while imposing tariffs on imports that over the past decade have failed to grow a base of domestic solar manufacturing.

Magnifying this tension, a new investigation by the U.S. Commerce Department into whether solar manufacturers circumvented tariffs on Chinese shipments by moving some operations to Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand and Cambodia threatens expected solar installations in 2022 and 2023. The probe follows President Joe Biden's decision in February to extend Trump-era solar tariffs.

"There seems to be no clear resolution of how to rapidly adopt and implement and deploy renewable energy domestically without relying on Chinese supply chains," said Ilaria Mazzocco, a fellow with the Trustee Chair in Chinese Business and Economics at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a think tank in Washington, D.C.

After Congress failed last year to pass a bill packed with renewable energy spending, including incentives for solar manufacturing, lawmakers have started discussing new legislation focused on climate and energy security. The outlook and timing for such a bill are unclear. Policy disagreements among Democrats derailed the party's last effort to advance major pieces of Biden's agenda.

The DOE has said the U.S. should provide at least 10 years of tax credits for solar manufacturing, since factories can take several years to build, with the richest subsidies reserved for making silicon ingots and wafers.

"If you're going to maintain a reliable trajectory towards decarbonization over time, you probably shouldn't have all of your product coming out of your main geostrategic competitor," said Joseph Osha, a managing director and senior research analyst at Guggenheim Securities. "This isn't something that's outside the grasp of policy, but it would require a level of [political] determination that, so far, we haven't seen."

Depending on available incentives, the U.S. could triple its panel-making capacity to 22 GW — close to total U.S. demand in 2021 — as well as create up to 8 GW of cell capacity and up to 6 GW of wafer and ingot capacity, according to an analysis of project announcements in 2021 by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.

Without long-term federal aid, many doubt the U.S. will ever have a solar supply chain beyond piecing together panels from imported parts, the easiest and cheapest step in the process.

"There is a lot of talk about building out the solar supply chain," said Xiaojing Sun, global head of solar at Wood Mackenzie, an energy research and consulting firm. However, "nobody has really broken ground yet, and I think there is a reason for that."

South Korea's Hanwha Solutions Corp. has said it is ready to invest billions of dollars to help build a U.S. solar supply chain, from polysilicon to panels, provided Washington creates new incentives. Maxeon Solar Technologies Ltd., which is headquartered in Singapore, has also said it wants to open a U.S. panel factory, contingent on government support. If Maxeon moves forward with its plan, it could offset the loss of a solar panel factory in Alabama owned by Japan's LG Electronics Inc., which in February said it was exiting the solar business under pressure from high raw material and logistics costs.

Meanwhile, Chinese solar manufacturers continue adding capacity, cementing their advantages of scale. By the end of the year, China's JinkoSolar Holding Co. Ltd. expects to have 60 GW of annual panel-making capacity, equivalent to around one-quarter of projected global demand.

"I really struggle to see in the absence of [federal aid] how you get that scale, the globally competitive type of industry that we all really need," said Scott Moskowitz, director of strategy and market intelligence at Hanwha subsidiary Q CELLS North America, which operates a solar panel factory in Georgia.

Despite the uncertainty in Washington, Convalt is pressing ahead.

Equity financing for Convalt's panel factory is coming from current shareholders, and the company is working with a lender that specializes in rural economic development to seek a loan guarantee from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, said Achuthan, who also leads ACO Investment Group, an infrastructure investor. Convalt has already secured some local incentives.

Phase two of the project — the ingot-wafer-cell factory — is a more expensive undertaking that looks harder to pull off without federal aid. "We're waiting for the federal government to see if they can push [manufacturing incentives] through Congress, which will only help," Achuthan said. Regardless of what happens in Congress, however, Convalt expects to have a factory up and running by mid-2024.

"We're going to find that patriotic [investor] to get it done," Achuthan said.

Constant battle

The U.S. solar industry has been embroiled in trade fights for more than a decade as successive administrations levied tariffs on low-cost imports, which helped fuel demand but drove U.S. producers out of business.

After filing for bankruptcy in 2017, Suniva Inc., one of America's last remaining solar cell manufacturers, pressed the Trump administration to impose new tariffs on imported cells and panels. Without more trade restrictions, the U.S. risked losing out permanently to China "and its proxies in southeast Asia and other global outposts," a Suniva executive told the U.S. International Trade Commission at the time.

Soon after, REC Silicon ASA closed a polysilicon plant in Washington state. The company said it was a victim of Chinese tariffs that cut off American producers from nearly all of their potential customers, China's silicon ingot and wafer manufacturers.

Efforts by the Trump administration to open China's solar market to U.S. polysilicon failed, while the tariffs it layered on top of those set by the Obama administration only boosted panel manufacturing, which does little to improve economic or energy security.

Even with the added panel capacity, America's solar market remains heavily dependent on factories in Asia. For the past three years, the country has imported enough solar panels to meet at least 93% of annual domestic demand, according to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Biden entered office in 2021 promising to change that dynamic, saying he would accelerate renewable energy deployment while boosting U.S. manufacturing. Since then, however, the administration has taken actions on trade policy that have angered project developers, potentially cutting off supplies of foreign-made panels without delivering a domestic manufacturing strategy.

A White House spokesperson did not respond to a message seeking comment.

The Solar Energy Industries Association, a lobbying group, acknowledges the U.S. is too reliant on imports but has argued tariffs are counterproductive.

The DOE, which has expressed concern that the Commerce Department probe is hurting the U.S. market, in February said Washington should create tax credits for solar manufacturing to capitalize on the "economic opportunity inherent in the energy sector transition." The Congressional-Executive Commission on China, a panel of U.S. lawmakers and administration officials that monitors human rights in that country, has also advocated for incentives to create a U.S. supply chain to "eliminate reliance on products made with forced labor."

U.S. Customs and Border Protection issued a trade restriction in 2021 against a top raw material supplier to the solar industry that allegedly abused workers in China's Xinjiang region, where the U.S. has accused Beijing of persecuting Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities. Months later, Biden signed the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which beginning in June will ban shipments linked to Xinjiang

unless importers can prove goods were not made with forced labor.

Responding to the U.S. crackdown, some Chinese manufacturers have said they are creating supply chains outside of Xinjiang to serve the American market. However, those expansions have been met with skepticism.

"None of the investors we work with are happy to settle for a bifurcated supply chain," said Anita Dorett, program director for the Investor Alliance for Human Rights, which represents institutional investors with more than $10 trillion in AUM, in an interview. "The issue really is that we need to reimagine our solar industry."

Two most important things’

Among U.S. solar project developers, however, overhauling supply chains and onshoring manufacturing does not appear to be a top priority.

"I think most folks in the U.S. are comfortable importing these solar panels from where they are manufactured globally as efficiently as possible," said Jesse Grossman, CEO of Soltage LLC, a solar project developer.

"What we're actually concerned about is jobs that come from installing and maintaining these assets, the investment that we're able to put into domestic projects that are going up all across the country at increasing velocity and, more importantly, the clean [energy] we get out of those panels," Grossman said.

On an earnings call April 21, John Ketchum, president and CEO of NextEra Energy Inc., one of the world's largest renewable energy companies, criticized the Commerce Department for disrupting the solar industry with the trade investigation after he said manufacturers had already begun moving supply chains away from China.

"From our standpoint, a consumer of solar panels, whether they be domestic or imported into the country, what's important to us is that we have price competitiveness and we have availability. Those are the two most important things," David Reuter, a vice president at NextEra and the company's chief communications and marketing officer, said in an interview.

"We absolutely support a larger domestic solar panel mix and manufacturing," Reuter said, "but that doesn't mean that we're going to sit on our hands for three years and wait for that to happen."

Critics say, however, that prioritizing the needs of project developers has hindered efforts to create a U.S. supply chain.

"The fact of the matter is, I think that our chase for efficiency over the past several decades has really compromised our security and our sense of security," U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai told the House Ways and Means Committee in March.

"In industries that we have lost, and we see this also in solar, it is so difficult to rebuild," Tai said. "We end up fighting each other through stakeholders regionally here in the U.S., and we end up fighting our allies over the scraps that are left to us in the global marketplace."

'Bring it all back'

Despite the long odds, a group of companies continues to see big opportunities in onshoring solar supply chains, either in the U.S. or in North America more broadly.

It remains to be seen whether investors share their vision.

In Massachusetts, Leading Edge Equipment Technologies Inc. is preparing to raise money this summer for a pilot project for silicon wafer manufacturing. If all goes to plan, the company will have more than 30 GW of U.S. production capacity within several years, CEO Rick Schwerdtfeger said.

"We are, I think, in a unique position because of our cost advantage. Investors are still going to be attracted to us regardless of incentives that pass in Washington," Schwerdtfeger said, adding, "I know a lot of investors and a lot of companies waiting for those incentives to pass, because other aspects of the supply chain are going to be more dependent on those incentives than we are."

Canadian Premium Sand Inc., which is trying to become the first North American manufacturer of glass used in solar panels, also will be cost competitive with manufacturers in Asia, according to Glenn Leroux, the company's president and CEO. However, Leroux said he still must win over investors, many of whom prefer "quick flip" deals to long-term bets on manufacturing.

With manufacturing incentives stalled in Congress, Convalt's Achuthan said he welcomes the prospect of more solar tariffs from the Commerce Department, hopeful that the old policies will prove more effective than they have in the past.

"We as a nation have got to go through the short-term pain, do a reset, bring it all back to America," Achuthan said. "Now the banks would say, 'OK, the policies are there, I see how difficult it is to import. I'll support American manufacturing.'"

https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/news-insights/latest-news-headlines/a-decade-into-tariffs-us-solar-manufacturing-is-still-deep-in-asia-s-shadow-70236202

Hanwha Group to invest US$3.3bn in clean energy over next five years, looking to establish solar R&D hub in South Korea

South Korean conglomerate Hanwha Group has said it will invest US$3.3 billion in solar and wind technology and intends to create a solar R&D hub in Korea as part of a massive investment strategy focused on several industrial areas.

Parent company of module manufacturer Qcells, Hanwha Group will invest a total of KRW37.6 trillion (US$29.7 billion) over the next five years, including KRW20 trillion (US$15.8 billion) in domestic industries such as energy, carbon neutrality, defence and aerospace.

https://www.pv-tech.org/south-korean-conglomerate-hanwha-group-has-said-it-will-invest-us3-3-billion-in-solar-and-wind-technology-and-intends-to-create-a-solar-rd-hub-in-korea-as-part-of-a-massive-investment-strategy-focus/
May 24, 2022

Det går hand i hand med att Hanwha vill köpa ingot+wafer fabrik i Sydkorea.

http://m.thebell.co.kr/m/newsview.asp?svccode=00&newskey=202205091847136960104052

Silan gas till anoder har seglat upp som det mest intressanta i ML. Där finns vallgrav som skyddar den affären i jämförelse med att sälja kisel på råvarumarknaden. Men alla affärer och intäkter till REC är sp klart viktiga

COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION - SYNOPSIS REPORT
Accompanying the document
COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS
EU Solar Energy Strategy
{COM(2022) 221 final}
https://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/ST-9453-2022-ADD-2/en/pdf

'Downright scary and untenable': Commerce secretary warns U.S. needs to secure a future for its chip industry
https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2022/05/25/gina-raimondo-warns-us-needs-to-secure-future-for-chip-industry.html
MAY 25, 2022
“..
"It is a huge national security issue and we need to move to making chips in America, not friend-shoring," Raimondo told CNBC exclusively at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday.
..”

Lol vi er virkelig 1% nede ovenpå de her nyheder (:

Hanwha Group to spend $30 bn on future growth sectors
https://amp.kedglobal.com/newsAmp/ked202205250002
MAY 25, 2022
“..
The group is poised to focus on the energy, carbon neutrality, defense and aerospace industries for the local investment.

Hanwha will spend 4.2 trillion won on renewable energy areas such as solar and wind power sectors.

It aims to foster the country as a manufacturing base for high-efficiency solar power-related products by strengthening research and development of the sector, as well as establishing advanced production facilities. It also decided to expand the renewable energy development business that combines solar and wind power.

The group’s heir apparent Kim Dong-kwan, the chief executive of Hanwha Solutions Corp., the energy unit of the group, has been working hard on the renewable energy businesses.
..”

CBP Notifies Importers as Uyghur Forced Labor June 21 Deadline Approaches
https://www.cassidylevy.com/news/cbp-notifies-importers-as-uyghur-forced-labor-june-21-deadline-approaches/
MAY 25, 2022
"
..
In anticipation of the June 21 implementation deadline for the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has begun issuing letters to “known importers” of imported merchandise possibly subject to the UFLPA. This includes imported merchandise sourced from locations or entities in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR).

CBP’s “known importer” letters are issued on an informational basis. They advise recipients that future entries of merchandise subject to the UFLPA may be subject to CBP enforcement action, including seizure, forfeiture and/or penalties, or other appropriate action under the customs laws. Copies of the letters are published on CBP’s UFLPA guidance website.

Even if an importer does not receive a letter, CBP still expects all importers to review their supply chains and, “institute reliable measures to ensure imported goods are not produced wholly or in part with convict labor, forced labor, and/or indentured labor (including forced or indentured child labor).”

The scope of the UFLPA is broad. The law creates a “rebuttable presumption” that goods produced in the XUAR — wholly or in part — are the products of forced labor under section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. § 1307). This applies to all upstream and downstream products, whether manufactured in the XUAR, elsewhere in China, or in third countries.
..
"

Hanwha CEO attends Davos forum as member of Yoon’s delegation
http://m.koreaherald.com/amp/view.php?ud=20220526000651
MAY 26, 2022
“..
Hanwha Solutions CEO Kim Dong-kwan attended the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, as the only entrepreneur among President Yoon Suk-yeol’s delegation, the energy-to-material firm said Thursday.

During the four-day forum which started Monday, Kim met with Daniel Yergin, vice chairman of S&P Global, and discussed the Russia-Ukraine war’s impact on the energy industry and geopolitical dynamics, according to Hanwha Solutions.

Kim also helped arrange a meeting between former South Korean lawmaker Na Kyung-won, who is leading the delegation, and BlackRock Investment Institute Chairman Thomas Donilon. Na and Donilon discussed plans for BlackRock to expand investments in South Korea and spend more than 50 percent of funding in sustainable business, Hanwha Solutions said.

Several others that Kim met at Davos include Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger, with whom he talked about the global chip shortage and forming a business partnership, as well as representatives of Rio Tinto, a multinational mining group, and Relativity Space, a US-based space company that makes rockets using three-dimensional printing.
..”

Xinjiang Police Files Expose Shocking Unprecedented Evidence Of Chinas Use Of Forced Labor
https://prosperousamerica.org/xinjiang-police-files-expose-shocking-unprecedented-evidence-of-chinas-use-of-forced-labor/
MAY 27, 2022
"
..
The contents of the Xinjiang Police Files are shocking, and CPA applauds numerous media outlets for their brave journalism and reporting, including the International Consortium of Independent Journalists (ICIJ), the BBC, The Washington Post, and Axios.

A “trove of data, known as the Xinjiang Police Files, provides overwhelming evidence that tens of thousands of Uyghurs have been detained in maximum security facilities — contradicting Chinese government claims that the centers provide voluntary vocational training,” reports Axios. The photos are part of “an unprecedented leak of thousands of images and documents from the public security bureaus … in Xinjiang … where the national government has held hundreds of thousands of Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in mass-internment camps.”

“The leak contains the first photographs taken inside the camps and obtained by news organizations without official authorization. The photos serve as irrefutable evidence of the highly militarized nature of the camps and present a stark contrast with those, previously published, that were taken on government-organized press tours,” reports the International Consortium of Independent Journalists (ICIJ).

“Their publication coincides with the recent arrival in China of the United Nations Human Rights Commissioner, Michelle Bachelet, for a controversial visit to Xinjiang, with critics concerned that her itinerary will be under the tight control of the government,” reports the BBC.

“A cache of leaked documents detailing draconian surveillance and reeducation practices in Xinjiang has shed fresh light of the scale of Beijing’s multiyear crackdown on ethnic Uyghurs in the region and cast a shadow over a highly orchestrated six-day trip to China by the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, Michelle Bachelet,” reports The Washington Post.
..
"

REC Silicon to restart production at Moses Lake in Q4 2023
https://www.pv-tech.org/rec-silicon-to-restart-production-in-moses-lake-at-q4-2023/
MAY 30, 2022

Lack of European solar manufacturing could cripple RePower EU bid
https://www.pv-magazine.com/2022/05/30/lack-of-european-solar-manufacturing-could-cripple-repower-eu-bid/
MAY 30, 2022
"..
The commission has stated an ambition to drive at least 420 GW of new solar generation capacity this decade, in a bid to wean the bloc off Russian gas. WoodMac has estimated Europe will supply around 331 GW of new solar by 2031 and this week said the commission's “RePower EU” plans have the potential to double that figure.

However, the Edinburgh-based research firm pointed out that “virtually all” of the 60,000 kilotons of solar panel raw material polysilicon it says Wacker Chemie produces each year is exported to China because there is insufficient demand in Europe. Keeping Wacker product in Europe would require 10 times more nearby ingot and wafer production capacity, 21 times more cell production lines, and three times more solar module capacity, WoodMac estimated.

It said hitting the raised ambition outlined by the commission would require three times more annual polysilicon production capacity, 20 times more wafer lines, 42 times more cell output, and six times more module capability. Solar panel raw material costs drove panel prices up more than 20% in 2021, according to WoodMac. It said the polysilicon price has trebled in the last 18 months and is expected to stay “elevated” throughout 2022.
.."

Soaring solar raw materials prices could thwart REPowerEU plans
https://www.woodmac.com/press-releases/soaring-solar-raw-materials-prices-could-thwart-repowereu-plans/
MAY 30, 2022
“..
Wood Mackenzie senior analyst Theo Theodorou said: “The global push to phase out fossil fuels and move to cleaner energy sources has driven innovation and policies that have resulted in tremendous cost reduction in the solar PV sector over the last two decades. However, last year, a perfect storm of covid disruptions, rapid recovery in demand from solar installations, fast-increasing freight rates, and high solar raw materials prices have pushed module prices more than 20% higher. Global prices for key raw materials such as polysilicon, silver, aluminium, copper and steel have all reached multiyear highs.”

Polysilicon, the main feedstock for producing wafers for crystalline silicon solar cells, has tripled in price over the last 18 months. This is due to covid restrictions and China’s power crunch resulting in delays in new capacity coming online. New polysilicon capacity in China has the potential to rebalance the market, but polysilicon prices are expected to stay elevated throughout 2022.

The main European producer, Germany’s Wacker Chemie, produces around 60 kilo-tonnes per annum of polysilicon, virtually all of which are exported to China, as there is not enough downstream capacity to consume this volume in Europe. For the region to consume its current polysilicon production it would need to increase its ingot and wafer manufacturing by a factor of 10 and further downstream manufacturing of cells and modules by 21-fold and 3-fold, respectively. To achieve REPowerEU goals and create a local solar supply chain, current capacities need even more aggressive expansions at 3 times more polysilicon, 20 times more wafers, 42 times more cells, and 6 times more modules.

Furthermore, the price for antireflective ultra-clear glass, the main material used for the front side cover of solar modules is under pressure due to increasing costs of natural gas and tin. In addition, the balance of plant materials such as aluminium, galvanised steel and copper all saw price increases of more than 30% since last year and there is not a lot that can be done to reduce the intensity of use in the short term.

Theodorou said: “Europe is called to transform its energy system in the wake of the Russia/Ukraine war, with the REPowerEU initiative envisioning at least 420 GW of new solar capacity by 2030. But as more sanctions are on the way against Russia, and with electricity and fuel prices showing no sign of slowing down, Europe needs to navigate this high price environment and act fast to develop a local solar supply chain to achieve its targets.”
..”

Newhouse talks technology, law enforcement during Moses Lake visit
Charles H. Featherstone, Columbia Basin Herald, Moses Lake, Wash.
Tue, May 31, 2022, 9:53 PM·4 min read

May 31—MOSES LAKE — Recent announcements by technology startups, like advanced battery makers Sila Technologies and Group14 Technologies, as well electric airplane work at AeroTEC, development of reusable rocket engines at Stoke Space Technologies and the restart of production at REC Silicon show a lot happening in Grant County, according to Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Yakima, during a visit to Moses Lake on Friday.

"So much research and development of cutting edge technology in Central Washington and happening right in Grant County, it's pretty amazing," Newhouse said. "It's always fascinating to me to come and learn just a little bit about the companies that are engaged here and the leadership work to make it all happen."

Newhouse said he believes it's important to visit companies in Washington's sprawling 4th Congressional District — which is larger than some states, geographically — to get a sense not only of what's going on but also how, as a legislator, he can help.

Newhouse said Congress has a role to play in encouraging the development and adoption of new technologies. That role includes encouraging research and development through the nation's network of national laboratories, fostering education and job development training to help people move into technical fields and promoting the development of infrastructure to support technology. That can include things like passing legislation to encourage the expanded availability of charging stations for electric vehicles.

"It kind of helps spur some of these technologies to get off the ground," Newhouse said. "I think there's probably way more ways that I'm even aware of right now that government has a role in helping foster and assist us to meet the future."

Newhouse said it is also important for the U.S. to be less reliant on Chinese factories' high-tech manufactured products, and the recent major investment by South Korea-based Hanwha Solutions in REC Silicon that will enable the company to restart solar-grade silicon production in Moses Lake is a good sign.

Pandemic supply chain issues have highlighted overdependence on foreign suppliers of some products, including silicon products, he said.
"I think that underscores the strategic need and importance for the United States to be more independent in some of our capabilities, and not be dependent on foreign sources for anything," Newhouse said.

https://news.yahoo.com/newhouse-talks-technology-law-enforcement-195300807.html

Qcells says Dutch court reaffirms scope of recall order imposed on Longi
https://renewablesnow.com/news/qcells-says-dutch-court-reaffirms-scope-of-recall-order-imposed-on-longi-787467/
JUNE 8, 2022
"
..
June 8 (Renewables Now) - The Court of Appeal of The Hague in the Netherlands has confirmed the scope and target of the recall order imposed on the Dutch unit of Chinese solar modules manufacturer Longi Solar as a result of the outcome of its legal dispute with rival Qcells.

The latest decision relates back to the court’s judgment in preliminary injunction proceedings that prohibits Longi (Netherlands) Trading BV, or Longi NL, from directly and indirectly infringing a particular patent in 11 European countries where Qcells’ parent, Hanwha Solutions Corporation, is the registered owner. These countries are Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, France, Hungary, Liechtenstein, Austria, Portugal, Spain, the UK and Switzerland.

The Hague Court of Appeal had ordered Longi NL to send a recall letter to its customers in the aforementioned countries, whether resellers, installers, project developers or solar park operators, and request that they return the patent-infringing products sold by it. Longi NL eventually appealed the ruling and sought to establish that its recall obligations are only applicable to products held in stock for future sales, but to no avail.
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One-pager guide to a sustainable solar supply chain (FREE DOWNLOAD)
https://ultralowcarbonsolar.org/assets/alliance-epeat-one-pager.pdf
JUNE 7, 2022

Solid Power Installs Pilot Production Line For Solid-State Battery Cells

The pilot line is designed to produce EV-scale, sulfide-based solid-state cells with silicon-rich anodes (over 50% active silicon in the anode) for high energy density.

Initially, the pilot line will produce cells for internal testing before delivering cells to Solid Power's automotive partners, including BMW and Ford, which are expected to kick off automotive qualification testing by the end of this year.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/insideevs.com/news/590430/solid-power-pilot-production-batteries/amp/
Juni 7, 2022

Hanwha Q Cells announces another favorable ruling in patent dispute with Longi in the Netherlands
https://www.pv-magazine.com/2022/06/09/hanwha-q-cells-announces-another-favorable-ruling-in-patent-dispute-with-longi-in-the-netherlands/
JUNE 9, 2022
"
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Hanwha Q-Cells had sued Longi and other manufacturers for patent infringement of its solar cell passivation technology. The new ruling follows Longi's appeal against Hanwha Q-Cells' first favorable ruling in November 2021.

“Longi NL sought to establish, through execution proceedings, that its recall obligations are only applicable to products held in stock for future sales,” Hanwha Q Cells said in a statement. “The Preliminary Relief Judge of the Rotterdam District Court and The Hague Court of Appeal disagreed and ruled that the recall measure also applies to all products that infringe EP ’689 and that are professionally used by Longi NL’s customers. The infringing products are Longi solar modules of the Hi-M03, Hi-M03m, Hi-M04, Hi M04m, Hi-M05, and Hi-M05m types (except for products referred to by HIH, HIB, and HIBD).

According to Hanwha Q-Cells, it is clear after the most recent decision that Longi NL must extend the recall campaign to all of its customers, such as PV product distributors, installers, project developers and plant operators, that purchased or use corresponding modules covered by the patent dispute. “Longi NL’s customers may return the infringing products at Longi NL’s expenses for an immediate refund of the purchase price,” the Korean manufacturer stated, noting that, if necessary, further legal action would be taken.
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Av for den :)

Man kan vel bare undlade at stjæle patenter :)

Det ser ut som att demokraterna kommer överens och att Manchin till slut röstar tillsammans med sitt parti.

Democrats optimistic Manchin will cooperate on climate bill
https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2022/06/09/democrats-optimistic-manchin-will-cooperate-on-climate-bill/

US Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm said the infrastructure law passed last year was “the spine of the president’s clean energy and energy future agenda, but the tax credits (in the reconciliation bill) are the lungs of it,” Granholm told POLITICO’s Sustainability Summit. “They absolutely need to pass and I am feeling actually pretty bullish about it at this very moment.”

Så vil jeg også føle mig bullish når Jennifer gør. Mange tak for at dele Bob!

Batteridrevne fly er på gang (Moses Lake clickbate fra meg, men dette blir relevant på sikt)

https://theaircurrent.com/aircraft-development/eviation-relocates-alice-moses-lake/

Er denne delt før? Om hvorfor Sila valgte ML

"Berdichevsky said Sila picked Moses Lake before knowing REC was reopening its facility. He added that although the company can get silane from multiple sources to start, as Sila grows its production it will need to either get silane from REC or make its own."

https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/inno/stories/news/2022/06/02/bay-area-moses-lake-sila-battery-tech.html

REC Silicon has entered into a memorandum of understanding with silicon metal company Ferroglobe for a raw material supply.

Ferroglobe will supply high-purity silicon metal from its plants in Alabama, Ohio and West Virginia for REC Silicon to make polysilicon at its Moses Lake, Washington, factory, which is scheduled to restart production at the end of 2023. This would establish a low-carbon U.S. based solar supply chain for polysilicon, the building block for crystalline silicon solar panels.

https://www.solarpowerworldonline.com/2022/06/rec-silicon-will-use-u-s-silicon-supply-in-restarted-solar-polysilicon-production-plans/
June 13, 2022

White House Meets With Solar Firms in Bid To Boost Manufacturing
https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/white-house-meets-with-solar-firms-in-bid-to-boost-manufacturing-1.1778894
JUNE 15, 2022
"
..
Samantha Sloan, vice president of global policy at First Solar Inc., said the meeting “only served to underscore the concerning disconnect between solar manufacturing realities and the administration’s understanding of key issues.”

The meeting “did not result in any alignment on the path forward,” Sloan said by email.

A White House official said the meeting reflected the administration’s commitment to quickly bring online new clean energy manufacturing in the US.

Participants stressed the urgency of spurring such projects amid the climate crisis and highlighted the opportunity to ensure the technology they depend on is made in America, the White House official said.

The Zoom-based meeting included a representative of Jinko Solar Co., a China-based manufacturer with a plant in Florida as well as factories throughout Asia that could have faced expanded tariffs under a recent trade probe, said two people familiar with the discussion.

Representatives of several other solar manufacturers were included, such as Hanwha Q Cells Co. and Auxin Solar Inc., the California-based company that successfully petitioned the Commerce Department to open the investigation. Major solar trade groups that fought the probe were also present.

Manufacturers pushed White House officials for details about how the president’s executive action will catalyze new government support for domestic panel factories, given the funding constraints, the people said. Manufacturers also pressed the administration to do more to push legislation through Congress expanding tax incentives for renewable projects and clean-energy manufacturing.
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Gratis registrering
REC Silicon is reopening its Moses Lake plant. Here's what it means for the red-hot battery tech industry.
https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/inno/stories/inno-insights/2022/06/15/rec-group14-sila-moses-lake.html
JUNE 15, 2022
"
..
For REC's part, although the company can currently supply silane for the smaller scale required by Sila and Group14, committing to providing silane for large-scale ambitions like electric vehicles, which both companies are eyeing in the coming years, will take more convincing.

"In order to build a plant, we have to have some additional assurance that we're going to have off-take. As these things start up, the worst thing we could do is isolate capacity to produce silane, build additional capacity to produce silane and then be sitting on an asset," said James May, CEO of REC.

May said if electric vehicles take off the way analysts expect, battery tech companies will need "several additional silane plants built somewhere in the world in order to meet that demand."

He added that REC doesn't need a firm contract and there is always risk in these decisions, and REC will decide how to invest in silane production based on Group14 and Sila's future plans. He said most talks with battery tech companies have been preliminary, and REC has talked to Group14 the most.

Group14, headquartered in Woodinville, and Sila, headquartered in Alameda, California, make a silicon-based powder designed to replace graphite in batteries. According to the companies, its powder can drop into existing manufacturing lines, and the powder can improve energy density.

Group14 raised $400 million in May, while Sila raised $590 million last year. Group14 is building a facility in Moses Lake slated to open in the second half of 2023. Sila bought a more than 600,000-square-foot facility right across the street from REC, and it plans to start production in the second half of 2024 with full production starting in the first half of 2025. The company announced the purchase in May.

Gene Berdichevsky, Sila's co-founder and CEO, said for now the company receive its supply of silane from a variety of sources, including REC. As Sila grows its production, however, he said Sila will need to get silane from across the street or make its own.

"It's not an accident that us and Group14 ended up there," Berdichevsky said.
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Dette.
Det er en utrolig viktig bekreftelse å få. Det sier seg selv at fremfor å "oppfinne hjulet" og bygge sin egen silanfabrikk, vil disse batteriprodusentene gjøre en avtale med Rec som gjør at de utvider, og kan levere det som trengs.

Kort oppsummert for sila nano og Group 14:

It's not an accident that us (Sila) and Group14 ended up there," Berdichevsky said.

I 2021 var dette en drøm - som ville sikre RECsilicon sin framtid. Nå er det en realitet (som markedet enda ikke har tatt innover seg):

https://finansavisen.no/nyheter/industri/2021/01/27/7614795/rec-kan-fa-monsterkunde-i-usa

Vil nok tro at det har blitt diskutert mer rundt dette enn det May sier. Som tidligere nevnt er det mye gentlemens agreement for å unngå meldeplikt.
Når G14 og Sila nå ser at HS har annonsert at de tar hele kapasiteten til REC, så kommer de frem i lyset og sier det de nå sier: "Det var ikke tilfeldig at vi havnet i ML".
REC på sin side, kan ikke si for mye på grunn av meldeplikten, vil jeg tro. Derfor en mer nyansert uttalelse fra May.

Vil tro at både G14 og Sila har mer enn nok med sine egne produkter å hanskes med å få ut i markedet, om de ikke skal starte silan fabrikk i tillegg.
Her kommer det nok forsikringer fra dem til REC om fremtidig behov, og REC lager en egen utvidelse med off-take til G14 og Sila.

Edit: Tror også at Enovix og Amprius har vært i diskusjoner med REC om off-take, men de har ikke vært så frempå i nyhetsbildet som G14 og Sila, så de går fremdeles under radaren, og May "slipper" å nevne dem.

Det tror jeg også. Ville vært noe spesielt om batterifabrikker plutselig skal begynne å lage egne fabrikker for å lage innsatsfaktorene de trenger. Det vil kreve mye investeringer og risiko. Istedenfor å skalere med fokus på kjerneområdet og egen teknologi.

Ordner seg dette!

Edit: Amprius kan være potensiell kjøper av den tomten SørlieInvest snakket om i går. Ikke at jeg har fått med meg hvilken tomt det er, men tipper et nytt anodeselskap er på vei inn i ML.

Kan og legge til at OneD battery er igang med å sette opp anlegg for pilotproduksjon i større skala i Moses Lake, uvisst om leveransen fra Amerikansk produsent er levert enda, “CVD equipment cooperation” er leverandør og de har tidligere guidet leveranse av produksjonsutstyr første halvår 2022:

"The order rate has benefited from the increased demand for nanotechnology materials including carbon nanotubes (CNTs), Graphene and silicon nanowires (Si-NWs) to support development and manufacturing for battery materials used in electric vehicles. CVD received two system orders in 2021 to deposit coatings onto powders used in silicon-graphite anodes, including a production system to OneD Battery Sciences (Palo Alto, CA) and a second for research and material development. Both systems are planned to ship in the first half of 2022.”

https://money.tmx.com/en/quote/CVV:US/news/5081943634374374/CVD_Equipment_Corporation_Reports_Increased_Product_Demand_For_2021

Dette anlegget er slik jeg har forstått det modulært og nogenlunde likt det som vil brukes i fullskala produksjon.

"Dette anlegget er slik jeg har forstått det modulært og nogenlunde likt det som vil brukes i fullskala produksjon."

Dette er jo spennende i tilfellet. Da er de kanskje ikke avhengig av å sikre seg en ny tomt og bygge på nytt sted for å starte produksjon i stor skala. Bare utvide på infrastrukturen de har. Jeg har gått rundt og tenkt at OneD kanskje må gjøre som G14 og SilaN, finne seg en ny stor tomt å bygge på.

Stemmer det. Er sannsynligvis den tomten som er ringet inn i blått (litt usikker hvor tomtegrensen går, men close enough):

https://ibb.co/t3gpLmp

Jeg har ingen informasjon om dette, uansett så er det rimelig å tro at man vil få en oppdatering fra OneD på et tidspunkt vedrørende fremdrift.

Her kommer det tydelig frem for meg at May mangler strategiske egenskaper. Han bør holde seg til regnearkene. Når han15/06, like etter å ha fått spørsmål rundt det samme på q1 her å lire av seg nyheter som ville skapt begeistring og optimisme blant investorene.. Krise!! Skaper bare usikkerhet, håper ikke han har tillit hos det nye styret.

Tomten som du har ringet inn her eier REC Silicon.

https://www.acrevalue.com/map/?lat=47.137995&lng=-119.195015&zoom=14

Delt av "Høstmørket" på Shareville:

https://www.seia.org/news/solar-executives-flock-washington-urge-congressional-action-reconciliation

Inside the White House meeting with solar manufacturers aiming to formulate PV production strategy
https://www.pv-tech.org/white-house-officials-solar-manufacturers-discuss-us-pv-manufacturing/
JUNE 16, 2022
"
..
The meeting, initially reported by Bloomberg and which was not public, lasted around an hour, was hosted by deputy national climate advisor Ali Zaidi and was attended by more than 20 representatives, according to the news service. PV Tech understands that industry trade bodies were also present.

Last week, President Biden authorised the US Department of Energy (DOE) to use the DPA – Cold War-era legislation designed to incentivise the domestic manufacture of strategically important goods – to accelerate the production of five clean energy technologies, including PV modules and module components.

At the time, the White House said it would convene “relevant industry” and other stakeholders to “maximise the impact” of tools available under the DPA.

The meeting was billed as just the beginning of efforts to establish a clear solar manufacturing strategy but one person in attendance told PV Tech that there was not even the skeleton of a plan, with few details fleshed out during the call.

“There are no plans, there is no clear path but a political announcement,” said the source. “As an industry player, we need to push and pull to make it happen. It is possible, and we have the government’s attention now.”

A second source PV Tech spoke to who was in attendance said there were voices on both sides of the highly contentious investigation into alleged circumvention of antidumping and countervailing duties (AD/CVD) – those who supported Auxin Solar’s petition and those vehemently against it who welcomed Biden’s two-year exemption from certain trade tariffs on solar modules manufactured in Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.

“There’s no way for anyone to say the White House didn’t make itself open to hearing a variety of viewpoints,” said the source.

“The call itself was dominated by vocal voices who support Auxin’s circumvention petition, including Auxin,” they said, adding that other stakeholders in the domestic manufacturing space “joined to show support for the administration’s important efforts with their solar proclamation”.

Nonetheless, it appears as though little of substance has come out of the meeting in terms of a clear solar manufacturing strategy.

Canadian solar manufacturer Heliene, which has production facilities in the US, was in attendance. Its CEO Martin Pochtaruk told PV Tech the company “finds the US federal administration decision to support domestic solar PV manufacturing encouraging” but that the industry needed to “promptly collaborate to transform that willingness into workable plans and programmes that transform such clear intention into manufacturing capital expenditure”.
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Lidt supplering

Solar execs lobby Congress for ITC extension, domestic manufacturing credits
https://www.solarpowerworldonline.com/2022/06/solar-execs-lobby-congress-itc-extension-domestic-manufacturing/
JUNE 16, 2022

Congressman Tim Ryan Introduces Legislation to Strengthen American Solar Manufacturing
https://timryan.house.gov/media/press-releases/congressman-tim-ryan-introduces-legislation-strengthen-american-solar
JUNE 16, 2022
"
Washington, D.C. — Today, Congressman Tim Ryan (OH-13) introduced the Ensuring America Gets Legitimate Energy Sourced, Originating, and Leased at Home Reliably Act (EAGLE SOLAR) Act, legislation that expands Buy American rules to solar purchase power agreements, ensuring that the solar panels that power the federal government are made in America by American workers, not in Chinese coal-fired power plants by Uyghur forced labor.

Currently, Buy American provisions apply to solar panel procurement, but not to panels used for purchase power agreements, which is the primary method the government pays for solar power. This bill closes that loophole, investing in domestic solar manufacturing companies and workers.

Original cosponsors of the EAGLE SOLAR Act include Representatives Marcy Kaptur (OH-09) and Peter DeFazio (OR-04).

“The solar panels that power American homes and businesses should be made in America by American workers, not by a human-rights-abusing communist government hell bent on undermining our workforce,” said Congressman Ryan. “If we want to meet the moment on climate change, reinvest in our communities, and dominate the industries of the future, we need to have the guts to take on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and close the loopholes that have enabled years of abusive trade practices. My legislation does just that, all while incentivizing growth in this key sector and leveling the playing field for Ohio workers, businesses, and the entire American solar industry.”

“American workers and American companies must be the ones who power America. The EAGLE SOLAR Act will cement Ohio’s role as a hub of solar innovation and support living wage jobs for hardworking men and women throughout the industry,” said Congresswoman Kaptur.


“As one of the two actual U.S. manufacturers of solar panels, we strongly support EAGLE SOLAR as a means to secure our energy future,” said Aaron Bates, Chairman & Chief Executive of Toledo Solar. “We must prevent our solar industry from being dominated by products from China and other countries that use slave labor and violate U.S. trade laws. We thank Representatives Ryan and Kaptur for their leadership in ensuring that the taxpayer dollars support the solar technology developed, manufactured, and deployed right here in the U.S. and by our allies.”

“Closing this ‘Buy American’ loophole is critical to ensuring that American solar powers the federal government. We applaud Congressman Ryan’s leadership on this issue,” said Samantha Sloan, VP of Global Policy for First Solar.

“On behalf of CPA and our members, we applaud Representative Ryan for introducing this critical legislation to boost American solar manufacturing,” said Michael Stumo, CEO of the Coalition for a Prosperous America. “Importantly, this bill will close a loophole that allows China’s government-subsidized solar manufacturers that use forced labor and dirty coal-fired power plants to exploit the Buy American Act — a loophole that the Biden administration has shown no interest in addressing.”

The United States currently leads the world in solar technology innovation, yet 80% of the world’s solar panels are currently made in China. Through a combination of lax environmental standards, the use of forced labor in the Xinjiang region, targeted subsidies, and other predatory trade practices such as dumping, circumvention, and intellectual property theft, China has engaged in unfair trade for years against American competitors.

Unfortunately, the Biden Administration’s recent decision to suspend solar import tariffs for 24 months will be detrimental to our domestic solar industry, enabling the CCP to continue to flood the U.S. market with cheap Chinese solar panels, smothering our domestic solar industry. The EAGLE SOLAR Act is critically needed to end our dependence on the CCP for solar manufacturing, put American workers first, and preserve our economic, energy, and national security.
"

WHY THIS BAY AREA BATTERY TECH COMPANY IS SETTING UP SHOP IN MOSES LAKE
https://suhrco.com/why-this-bay-area-battery-tech-company-is-setting-up-shop-in-moses-lake/
JUNE 16, 2022
"
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“We are very keen to scale up quickly. This market, you either keep up with it or get left behind, so we wanted an existing site,” Berdichevsky said. “Building a new building is incredibly time-consuming and expensive.”

As for talent, Berdichevsky said Moses Lake, which has a population of roughly 25,000, has strong industrial talent with the likes of REC Silicon and other manufacturers in the area. Sila is already forming relationships with local community colleges, and nearby schools like Gonzaga and Washington State University could provide key talent, he added. According to Berdichevsky, Sila plans to hire locally in Moses Lake for manufacturing jobs, as well as some of the engineering jobs.

The new facility is right next to REC Silicon’s facility at 3322 Road N NE. REC Silicon makes a gas called silane that is crucial for both Sila and Group14. The company, which makes polysilicon and silicon gases for the solar and electronics industries, has facilities in Moses Lake and Silver Bow, Montana. REC’s facility in Moses Lake has been dormant, but after a major investment from the South Korean manufacturing company Hanwha Corp. earlier this year, REC in May announced it plans to restart production and reach full capacity in 2024.

Berdichevsky said Sila picked Moses Lake before knowing REC was reopening its facility. He added that although the company can get silane from multiple sources to start, as Sila grows its production it will need to either get silane from REC or make its own.

Sila and Group14 both make a silicon-based powder that is designed to replace graphite in traditional batteries. The powder, which both companies say can drop into existing manufacturing processes, improves energy density, according to the companies. Both are eyeing consumer electronics and electric vehicles.

Sila’s powder already powers a fitness tracker called the Whoop 4.0. The company raised $590 million last year, while Group14 raised $400 million in May.

Sila said the Moses Lake facility is on 160 acres, and the company’s initial production will be enough to power between 100,000 and 500,000 electric vehicles and 500 million mobile phones each year.

The facility will start production in the second half of 2024 and will reach full production in the first half of 2025. Berdichevsky said the company plans to hire about 100 workers at the plant to start. A company spokesperson said Sila paid in the “low nine figures” for the facility.

“We’ve got to get to building,” Berdichevsky said. “We have real customers.”
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Fra April i år, jeg har ikke sett dette nevnt noe sted på forumet.

Delstatstøtte til Group14, omhandler “silicon polymer Solid State Batteri", ikke Li-ion.


"Group14 (Seattle, King County) – $426,858 for demonstration of a silicon polymer solid state battery. New battery technologies are critical to the electrification of key sectors, and the proposed next generation silicon polymer solid state battery will increase energy density, while retaining the longevity and stability seen in traditional lithium-ion batteries.”

https://www.commerce.wa.gov/news/commerce-announces-latest-round-of-state-investments-in-new-and-novel-clean-energy-technology-projects-powered-by-diverse-public-private-partnerships/

History says the next bull market is just months away, and it could carry the S&P 500 to the 6,000 level, according to Bank of America

https://finance.yahoo.com/m/823521ee-49fe-316c-a75b-fd558ae077cb/history-says-the-next-bull.html

UAE aluminum maker enters silicon metal, polysilicon business
https://www.pv-magazine.com/2022/06/27/uae-aluminum-maker-enters-silicon-metal-polysilicon-business/
JUNE 27, 2022

Biden administration should chart strategy for US solar
https://thehill.com/opinion/congress-blog/3537731-biden-administration-should-chart-strategy-for-us-solar/amp/
JUNE 26, 2022