LONGi, the world leading solar technology company, has signed an agreement with TBEA Sunoasis (“TBEA”) to supply 360MW of its high-efficiency solar modules for TBEA’s energy production base at Shihezi City in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. As part of the agreement, LONGi will prioritise delivery of 103MW of its highly anticipated new product, which means that the Hi-MO 5 module, designed for ultra-large ground power plants, can be officially evaluated by the market.
TBEA Sunoasis has rich experience in building large-scale wind and photovoltaic power stations in desert, mountain, fishery-solar, agricultural-solar, low wind speed, commercial roof, residential roof and other areas. With Class A qualification for power construction general contracting, TBEA has successively undertaken the construction of large-scale mountain photovoltaic power station, fishery-solar power station, wind-solar desert grid-connected demonstration power station project, commercial PV energy storage power station project and other new energy projects which have reached new heights in the industry. By far, TBEA has undertaken the construction of more than 5,000 wind power and photovoltaic On-grid/off-grid power stations, with the capacity of nearly 16 GW.
LONGi released Hi-MO 5 in June and, just 70 days later, the first module rolled off the production line at its factory in Xianyang City, Shaanxi Province. With the construction of an additional factory in Jiaxing City, Zhejiang Province, the production capacity of Hi-MO 5 modules will reach 12GW this year.
The PV industry’s debate on high-power module products has been ongoing since the beginning of the second half of the year. Photovoltaic products with higher power and value have gradually become the trend and focus of the industry as we stand at the threshhold of the era of grid parity. In order to meet the needs of global customers for ultra-high power products, LONGi’s R&D team has constantly challenged the most advanced boundaries on the module application side in developing Hi-MO 5. As the world’s leading provider of power station solutions, TBEA’s contract with LONGi indicates that the ultra-high value of the new module will be fully recognized by the market.
LONGi has undertaken a comparison exercise between the Hi-MO 5 module based on 182mm wafers with two other mainstream high-power products. According to calculations, Hi-MO 5 is first of all significantly higher than other modules in terms of module power and conversion efficiency. Taking the installed capacity of a 100MW project as an example, the Hi-MO 5 module with a power of 535W has the optimal overall system cost among the three. The cost per watt of the Hi-MO 5 module has been reduced by 3 to 4 cents, bringing cost savings of about 3 to 4 million yuan. In addition, the high power and efficiency of Hi-MO 5 also reduces land requirements and module usage. Especially in terms of land requirement, the Hi-MO 5 module can save 20-40 acres compared with the other two modules. These extra benefits can significantly reduce the later operation and maintenance costs of a power station. With its excellent LCOE performance, the Hi-MO 5 module ranks top in several areas of evaluation, making it the preferred choice for ultra-large ground power stations.
“The market’s choice is the only criterion for testing the value of a product. LONGi securing TBEA’s order is just the first step for the new Hi-MO 5 module,” commented Dennis She, Senior Vice President of LONGi Solar. “LONGi believes that high performance and reliability are key requirements for our customers. The Hi-MO 5 module will continue to have success around the world with the arrival of the era of grid parity and its ultra-high value will continue to be validated.”
