Guangdong Golden Glass Technologies Ltd. announced on December 7 that it has successfully completed equipment move-in and installation for its first HJT cell production line. As its name indicates, Golden Glass has been primarily a manufacturer of specialty glass products that are capable of resisting extreme force, fire, etc. However, the company has also recently entered the market for BIPV. This June, the company revealed that it will invest RMB 832 million to build an integrated production base in Suzhou (Jiangsu Province) for the manufacturing of HJT cells and modules. The company also noted that its cell production line will be compatible with 182mm and 210mm wafers. The annual production capacity of the base is set at 1.2GW.

According to the company’s statement, this cell production line includes a chain-type low-temperature gettering process, a cell cutting process for splitting cells into halves, and other smart manufacturing technologies. The production-related data that each piece of mono-Si wafer generates during processing are collected and used to enable the automated and intelligent management of the entire production line. The four main sections of the production line adopt HJT 3.0 equipment and tools that company has developed in-house. In particular, the PECVD and PVD are fully integrated into a single process section that supports continuous coating. This, in turn, lowers the manufacturing costs and raises the conversion efficiency rates of cells.

Based on the company’s schedule, the initial phase of its production base is close to finishing production line setup. Next, the company will be calibrating its equipment and conduct pilot runs. Full-scale production is expected to take place at the start of 2022. Once up and running, the Suzhou base will be supplying modules featuring half-cut HJT cells that are noted for their thinness and large size.