LG Electronics to enter increasingly crowded solar market

The growing attractiveness of the global solar energy market was underlined this week when South Korea's LG Electronics (LG) announced that it is to start commercial production of solar cells and modules next month.

The company said that it plans to manufacture approximately 520,000 solar modules a year using silicon wafers, at a plant 200 kilometres to the south east of Seoul with a total capacity of 120MW.

LG said that it planned to set up another production line for operation by 2011, increasing total output to 240MW.

Kwan-shik Cho, vice president of the solar business team at LG Electronics, explained that the goal is to become a global player in the world's solar industry.

"While we recognise this is a crowded playing field, LG has the necessary skills, know-how and business strategy to make this a profitable venture for the long-term," he said.

LG sees the solar business as a key area of growth, and claimed that it had been preparing to enter the market since 2004.

The firm will manufacture large-area thin-film solar cells, as well as the more widespread crystalline solar cells.

In July 2009, LG announced that the company had achieved the world's most energy efficient large-area thin-film solar cells in a trial.

LG's solar operation will be administered by its air conditioning division, which it says has the necessary experience in managing energy resources and developing products efficiently.

The solar market is estimated to be worth around $11bn in 2010, with crystalline solar cells expected to make up 80 per cent of the market, according to LG.

The move will take the company into direct competiton with a raft of solar energy firms, as well as electronics rivals Sharp and Mitsubishi, both of which already operate large solar energy divisions.