Hyundai Heavy, KCC join in polysilicon venture

A joint venture for polysilicon production is being planned by Korean companies Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. and KCC Corp., according to a report from Korea.net.

The two companies agreed to establish the joint venture with paid-in capital of about $89 million, with Hyundai Heavy holding a 49-percent stake in the company, Hyundai Heavy said in a regulatory filing.

When completed, the company will have an annual production capacity of 3,000 tons of polysilicon, an essential raw material in the production of solar cells for panels that convert sunlight into electricity.

KCC has signed a deal with U.S.-based Solar Power Industries Inc. to supply about $97 million worth of polysilicon by December 2013.

This is Hyundai Heavy's second factory for manufacturing solar modules and solar cells. In 2006, the company set up a plant which produces 150,000 solar modules annually.