On 18 October 2024, Angolan oil company Sonangol and China's Qinghai Lihao Clean Energy signed a memorandum of understanding in the Angolan capital, Luanda.

The project marks an important step for Angola in the solar energy sector, which aims to target Africa's rich source of high-purity quartz and set up a package of projects covering the entire industrial chain from quartz ore, quartz sand, polycrystalline silicon up to solar modules.

According to the memorandum of understanding, the two parties will co-operate in the development of Angola's quartz ore resources for the production of metallurgical silicon and polysilicon, which in turn will be used to manufacture solar panels. The plant is expected to have an annual capacity of 180,000 tonnes of metallurgical silicon and 150,000 tonnes of polysilicon, with an initial capacity of 50,000 tonnes, it was said. This initiative not only creates new economic growth for Angola, but also paves the way for a solar panel industry based on quartz exploration in the country.

The co-operation will not only promote Angola's energy transition, but will also inject new vigour into China-Africa co-operation, pushing the two sides together towards a greener, more sustainable future.

Source : https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/QtOlUurkzTGdnynI9VQ7zA