OCI Group expands US solar push as inverter unit joins North America's largest clean energy expo

OCI Power to join OCI's unified booth at RE+ 2026 for the first time, aiming to raise brand awareness ahead of US market entry

By Park Hye-won, The Herald Business

Amid surging electricity demand driven by AI, OCI Holdings affiliates are aggressively targeting the US solar market. On top of capital investment in its American solar operations, OCI Power — an inverter manufacturer that has largely focused on the domestic market — is now making a full push into the United States.

OCI Power, an OCI Holdings affiliate that produces solar inverters, will participate in RE+ 2026 in the United States for the first time this year, according to industry sources Wednesday. RE+ is the largest renewable energy exhibition in North America, with 995 companies expected to take part this year.

Mission Solar Energy (MSE), OCI Holdings' US solar business arm, has participated in the exhibition every year alongside key affiliates already generating earnings in the United States, including OCI Power and OCI Terasus. OCI Power currently operates only its Gunsan factory in South Korea and has yet to record any exports, but aims to enter the US market within the year.

OCI Power plans to use the exhibition as an opportunity to promote its brand. "We will raise awareness and strengthen synergies through collaboration among OCI affiliates," an OCI official said.

An aerial view of the Alamo 1 solar project in Bexar County, San Antonio, Texas, operated by OCI Energy. [Provided by OCI Holdings]

OCI Holdings' aggressive push into the US market comes as solar power has emerged as a key energy source, buoyed by AI-driven electricity demand. While investment in the US AI industry is surging, the means to procure sufficient power remain scarce, making solar — which can deliver electricity cheaply and quickly — an increasingly attractive option.

OCI Holdings has also been accelerating capital investment. Last year, it invested $265 million in MSE's Texas site to build a cell production factory with a capacity of 2 gigawatts, a move aimed at responding to the US government's push to exclude Chinese solar products. In addition, OCI Terasus, a Malaysian production subsidiary, exports polysilicon sourced from non-Chinese supply chains to the United States.

Hanwha Qcells, which rivals OCI Holdings as one of South Korea's two dominant solar companies, is also investing aggressively in the US market. Hanwha Qcells recently completed its integrated solar production hub, "Solar Hub," in Georgia and has begun mass production of solar cells. Solar Hub is the largest solar manufacturing facility in North America and the only plant in the United States that produces all major value-chain components — ingots, wafers, cells and modules.

"The US solar market continues to grow on the back of AI data center expansion, manufacturing reshoring and rising electricity demand," said Shin Ji-hye, a KOTRA trade official at the Dallas office. "By expanding cooperation with local manufacturers on the strength of stable supply capabilities, Korean companies can establish themselves as key partners in the US solar supply chain."

klee@heraldcorp.com