JA Solar has reached glass procurement and wafer slicing transactions with multiple suppliers

China’s integrated solar photovoltaic product manufacturer JA solar Technology Co., Ltd. is entering into deals with multiple suppliers based on its future business plans. The latest deals are glass procurement and wafer slicing equipment.

According to the agreement reached with the photovoltaic glass supplier Flat Glass Group, JA Solar will purchase nearly 230 million square meters of mtr. From August 1, 2021 to July 31, 2024, the two parties will decide to extend the arrangement. JA Solar said that the price will be negotiated on a monthly basis, and the transaction cost is approximately 4.618 billion yuan (approximately US$715 million), including taxes and fees.

Flat Glass Group added that the agreement is beneficial to the company’s large-scale thin-film photovoltaic glass product market. The total contract value accounts for 74% of the company’s audited operating income in 2020, totaling 6.26 billion yuan. In early January 2021, Flat Glass Company and JinkoSolar Company signed a contract for rolled glass of 338 million square meters with a contract period of 3 years. Glass suppliers are also increasing production capacity, adding 6 new production lines with a daily output of 1,200 tons.

JA Solar said that the contract will ensure its long-term stable supply of raw materials, which will enable the company to maintain stable profitability.

In another transaction signed with Qingdao Gaoce Technology Co., Ltd., a manufacturer of wafer slicing equipment, JA Solar will pay 158.88 million yuan (US$24 million) for the wafer slicing equipment. Gaoce is expected to deliver, install and debug products from July 2021 to January 2022, and provide quality assurance.

Gaoce stated in the announcement that if the contract is successfully implemented, it will have a positive impact on its operating results in 2021 and 2022.

JA Solar is a supporter of 182mm wafer size modules, and its goal is to increase its total module production capacity from 23 GW at the end of 2020 to 40 GW at the end of 2021.

According to PV Infolink’s data, the share of large modules with 182mm and 210mm wafers in the global solar supply chain is gradually increasing. The company claims that JA solar is the third largest supplier of solar modules in the first half of 2021.