Two companies sign MOU to develop optimized modules and substructures

Yu Jae-yeol, left, head of Hanwha Qcells' Korea business division, and Hong Sam-su, head of Posco's cold-rolled and coated steel marketing division, pose for a photo at the MOU signing ceremony. [Hanwha Solutions]
Yu Jae-yeol, left, head of Hanwha Qcells' Korea business division, and Hong Sam-su, head of Posco's cold-rolled and coated steel marketing division, pose for a photo at the MOU signing ceremony. [Hanwha Solutions]

Hanwha Solutions' Qcells division signed an MOU with Posco on Thursday to promote agrivoltaic solar power and build a domestic industry ecosystem, the company announced Monday.

The two companies plan to jointly develop and supply a package of modules and substructures optimized for agrivoltaic installations, and later form a domestic corporate alliance to deliver an integrated agrivoltaic solution.

Agrivoltaic solar power combines farming and solar energy generation to enhance the sustainability of rural communities. By optimizing the placement and angle of solar modules, the technology supplies crops with the sunlight they need while generating electricity from the remainder. The approach has drawn attention as a solar solution well suited to South Korea's relatively small land area and mountainous terrain. Hanwha Qcells has previously manufactured modules optimized for agrivoltaic use and supplied them to domestic pilot complexes to broaden the technology's reach.

Despite those advantages, agrivoltaic solar has remained largely confined to pilot projects and has yet to achieve widespread commercial deployment. Under existing farmland law, solar installations — which can typically operate for more than 30 years — had to be dismantled after just eight years, making it difficult to generate meaningful returns.

That constraint has now been eased. Legislation to promote and support agrivoltaic solar power projects, which passed the National Assembly plenary session in May and was enacted and promulgated in June, extended the maximum permit period for agrivoltaic projects from eight years to 23 years. The change lays the groundwork for agrivoltaic solar to become a new revenue stream for individual farmers and agricultural cooperatives.

With the law's implementation imminent, the two companies plan to use the MOU as the basis for forming a domestic corporate alliance. Through that alliance, they aim to build a trusted cooperation framework among Korean companies and offer an integrated solution covering financing, equipment, construction and electricity sales.

"Agrivoltaic solar is a two-birds-one-stone solution that simultaneously advances renewable energy expansion and improves the sustainability of rural communities," said Yu Jae-yeol, head of Hanwha Qcells' Korea business division. "In line with the government's push to expand renewable energy, Hanwha Qcells will work together with Posco to foster a sound agrivoltaic solar market."

Hong Sam-su, head of Posco's cold-rolled and coated steel marketing division, said the company would "actively collaborate with Hanwha Qcells to develop structural solutions suited to domestic farming conditions and contribute to building the related industry ecosystem, drawing on Posco's long-standing materials technology and business capabilities."


yeongdai@heraldcorp.com