Hanwha Qcells completes a large photovoltaic project for Meta

A wide view of the newly completed 50 megawatt solar power plant in Borrego Springs, California, a Hanwha Qcells project to provide renewable energy for Meta. (Hanwha Q Cells)

Hanwha Qcells said Thursday it has completed a large solar and energy storage project in California to provide renewable energy to Meta, Facebook’s parent company.

The facility, located in Borrego Springs, California, has 50 megawatts of solar modules and a 200 megawatt-hour energy storage system. Meta is carbon neutral from 2020 and aims to achieve full carbon neutrality in its supply chain by 2030.

The photovoltaic capacity of 50 MW places this project in the middle class among industrial-scale photovoltaic installations. The energy produced by this solar plant will cover approximately 3-4 percent of the Meta data center’s total annual energy consumption.

Hanwha Qcells, a subsidiary of Hanwha Solutions specializing in the production of photovoltaic cells, is actively developing its portfolio in the USA. In April, the company completed the construction of a 150 MW solar power plant in Wyoming, where it provided a full range of services, from design development and module delivery to construction and securing a power purchase agreement. This plant was subsequently sold to Southern Power in November, optimizing profitability through asset management.

Moreover, in January, Hanwha Qcells entered into a significant agreement with Microsoft to supply 12 gigawatts of solar modules and engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services over the next eight years.

The company is also strengthening its presence in the global ESS market, which is experiencing rapid growth due to increasing dependence on renewable energy sources. Energy storage systems are crucial to stabilizing electricity grids by storing excess energy produced during periods of peak production and releasing it during periods of high demand or low production.

According to Bloomberg New Energy Finance, the global ESS market is expected to grow from $11 billion in 2021 to $262 billion by 2030. The U.S. Energy Information Administration projects the U.S. ESS market to grow from $692 million in 2019 to $8.261 billion by 2025

In 2022, Hanwha Qcells completed and secured revenues from seven ESS projects in the US, including a 380 MWh ESS project where it handled the entire development and EPC phases.

“We are leveraging our large solar manufacturing base in North America to enhance our project development, EPC and power capabilities to meet the massive energy needs of global technology companies with custom green energy solutions,” said Hanwha Qcells CEO Lee Koo -yung.