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DC
Chemical’s Board of Directors has approved plans to expand the
company’s polysilicon manufacturing facilities. The move will see the
expansion of the existing No. 1 and No. 2 facilities at an estimated
cost of 260 billion South Korean won (just under US$250 million), and
the construction of a new 10,000MT plant at its Gunsan site at an
estimated cost of 880 billion won (approximately US$840 million).
With this expansion, DC Chemical would move up the ranks to become the world’s second largest polysilicon producer, with an annual polysilicon output of 26,500MT per annum by 2010. The company has also said that it is currently discussing further long-term arrangements for the capacity of the No. 3 plant.
Construction on the new 10,000MT site (No. 3) will begin in July 2008, with an expected completion date of December 2009. The expansion of plant No. 1 will bring the site’s capacity from 5,000MT to 6,500MT per annum, while the company has said that additional funds are required for the construction of plant No. 2, the establishment of which was announced in December 2007.
The cost of these developments will bring the company’s total investment in the polysilicon business to 2.25 trillion won (approximately $2.2 billion), comprising an initial investment of 1.11 trillion won and today’s announcement of a further investment of 1.14 trillion won.
Financing for the projects will be provided via a combination of long-term supply agreements and internal funds.
By Síle Mc Mahon
