Cooperation in the African PV market
Frankfurt am Main/Germany: LONGi Solar, a leading manufacturer of monocrystalline high-performance modules, has signed a Memorandum of Intent (MOI) with the Tunisian project developer SHAMS Technology for a long-term cooperation. LONGi Solar and SHAMS Technology will develop PV projects in African markets where SHAMS has an active partner network. As a first step, the two companies are planning a 10 MW project in Kasserine located in the west-central part of Tunisia.
Africa to become third-largest PV market in the future
“In many regions of Africa, the electricity infrastructure is still underdeveloped. We see great potential: Instead of fossil energy, African countries are focusing on generation from renewable sources”, says Richard For, Vice President of LONGi Solar. “In addition, the continent has sufficient solar radiation and enough space for the installation of large photovoltaic systems. We expect Af-rica to become the world’s third largest market for PV systems in the medium term.”
“We are very proud of the partnership with LONGi Solar. Thanks to the cooper-ation, we can offer customers very high-quality solar modules and services from one of the world market leaders for highly efficient monocrystalline solar cells and modules”, states Mejdi Kilani, CEO of SHAMS Technology. The compa-ny already has a partner network of local installers in important African mar-kets, which simplifies the commissioning of contracts for projects and makes local implementation considerably easier.
Ambitious expansion targets for Tunisia
The first joint project with an output of 10 MW is planned in Tunisia, where LONGi Solar and Shams will offer high-efficiency monocrystalline photovoltaic modules under the “SHAMS-LONGi” brand. The country has set itself the target of installing a total of 200 MW of photovoltaic capacity by 2022. LONGi and SHAMS have the ambition to supply and install half of this capacity.
Focus on highly efficient mono modules
LONGi Solar is the only manufacturer in the world to specialize completely in monocrystalline high-performance modules. In the first half of 2018, the com-pany invested $105 million in research and development, aiming to reduce electricity production costs, equivalent to 7.18 percent of the company’s reve-nue. No other module manufacturer in the world invests more heavily in tech-nology development.
About LONGi Solar
LONGi Solar is a world-leading manufacturer of high-efficiency monocrystalline solar cells and modules. LONGi group, the parent company of LONGi Solar, has been focusing on monocrystalline technology since its foundation 18 years ago and is the largest supplier of monocrystalline silicon wafers in the world, with total assets above $5.2 billion (2017). The company has its headquarters in Xi’an and branches in Japan, Europe, North America, India, Malaysia, Australia and Africa.
Source: sunbeam-communications
