Suniva Raises $835 Million to Build Solar Cell Factory in South Carolina

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On September 8, U.S. solar cell manufacturer Suniva completed $835 million in debt and equity financing, with the funds to be used to build its second solar cell manufacturing base in Laurens County, South Carolina. The new factory is planned to produce 4.5 GW of high-efficiency monocrystalline silicon solar cells annually. The latest investment scale for the project is approximately $600 million, with construction planned for completion by the end of 2027 and full capacity ramp-up beginning in 2028.

The financing consists of senior secured credit, second-lien credit, and equity investment. Funds managed by Goldman Sachs Alternatives and I Squared Capital provided the senior secured credit, while JBA Asset Management provided the second-lien financing; Electron Capital Partners, Orion Infrastructure Capital, Rubric Capital Management, and Suniva's existing major shareholder Lion Point Capital participated in the equity investment. Following the completion of the financing, the project's construction funding needs have been covered.

The new factory will use an existing industrial building at 1200 Commerce Blvd. in the city of Laurens, with a building area of 621,468 square feet, approximately 57,700 square meters. The main structure of the plant has already been completed, and Suniva will install solar cell manufacturing equipment and production systems within the existing building. The project is expected to add 564 manufacturing jobs.

Suniva first announced the Laurens County factory plan in April, disclosing at that time an investment of more than $350 million and plans to lease approximately 620,000 square feet of plant space to build a solar cell production base. With the completion of financing in September, the company has updated the project's latest investment figure to approximately $600 million and further clarified the timeline for construction completion and capacity ramp-up.

Suniva's existing Norcross, Georgia factory has approximately 1 GW of annual solar cell production capacity. The Laurens County project is a new manufacturing base for the company, and its planned 4.5 GW capacity will independently form new U.S. domestic solar cell production capacity. Public information has not yet disclosed the specific number of production lines at the new factory, core equipment suppliers, capacity per production line, equipment installation timeline, or the starting month of official mass production.