Announcement of Joint Venture with Global Companies for U.S. Solar Cell Production
"Expectations for Recovery in Solar Polysilicon Sales"
OCI Holdings recorded an operating profit of 102 billion KRW on a consolidated basis in 2024. This figure represents a sharp decline compared to the 531 billion KRW performance of the previous year. OCI Holdings expressed expectations that the solar power business would perform well under the Trump administration in the United States and announced plans to improve profitability in the related business sector.
On the 10th, OCI Holdings announced its earnings, reporting consolidated sales of 3.577 trillion KRW, a 35.0% increase from the previous year, while operating profit fell 80.9% to 102 billion KRW. Although sales increased due to the consolidation effect of OCI, operating profit declined due to changes in the global market external environment. A major cause was the sharp drop in sales of solar polysilicon to the U.S. by OCI Terasus, a Malaysian subsidiary of OCI Holdings, in the second half of last year. Additionally, large one-time expenses, such as increased infrastructure construction costs reflected in DCRE, an urban development subsidiary, also impacted the poor performance.
To respond to market uncertainties, OCI Holdings has set a policy to become a supplier that meets local solar demand in the U.S. OCI Holdings plans to improve profitability by thoroughly managing non-Chinese supply chains and reducing costs. This approach reflects expectations that the U.S. tariff policy against China could bring a windfall benefit to the company. OCI Holdings anticipates increased demand within the U.S. for solar polysilicon produced by its subsidiary OCI Terasus.
Furthermore, OCI Holdings announced plans to take the first step toward vertical integration of the solar value chain by establishing a joint venture (JV) with global partners to manufacture solar cells in the U.S. Based on the expected recovery in sales of solar polysilicon from OCI Terasus, the company intends to build a production design that extends to wafers, cells, and modules. OCI Holdings projected, based on Bloomberg reports and others, that U.S. demand for solar panels this year will be approximately 50 GW, growing more than 10% compared to the previous year.
Lee Woo-hyun, Chairman of OCI Holdings, stated, "Even amid the worsening global economic recession this year, we plan to strengthen the competitiveness of our core solar polysilicon business and lay the foundation for future growth through local investments in the U.S."
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