Local Chinese news outlets have reported that Yuze (Jiangxi) Semiconductor Co. Ltd. and the government of the Wenshan Zhuang and Miao Autonomous Prefecture signed a strategic cooperation agreement on March 9. Under the agreement, Yuze will set up 30GW/year of production capacity for growing single-crystal silicon rods and 30GW/year of production capacity for wafer slicing in Wenshang Zhuang, which is situated in the southeastern portion of China’s Yunnan Province.

Yuze is a joint venture of domestic and foreign investors. The company manufactures and sells metallic silicon, N-type single-crystal silicon rods, and N-type silicon wafers used in the PV industry. Following an in-depth inspection of the areas around Wenshan Zhuang and several rounds of negotiations with the local government, Yuze has made the decision to establish a major production base in the prefecture. Guangnan County, which is the southeastern tip of the prefecture, will accommodate facilities that provide 10GW/year of single-crystal silicon rods and 10GW/year of wafers.

Yuze is also plans to build another production base for silicon rods and wafers in Qujing, a prefecture-level city in Yunnan. The deal to land the base in Qujing was inked earlier this February between the company and the government of that city. These capacity expansion projects are intended to provide Yuze with the capability to meet the growing demand from its customers. In December last year, Yuze and PV cell manufacturer Jolywood entered into a long-term supply agreement under which Yuze will provide 1.06 billion pieces of mono-Si wafers to Jolywood between 2021 and 2023.