OCI Co., South Korean chemical and renewable energy company, is set to bolster its investment in solar energy business in Texas, the United States, after a decade of its successful business in the country where green energy development has gained further traction under the Joe Biden administration.

OCI Solar Power, the U.S. entity of OCI, currently operates Alamo 1 and Alamo 2 solar power plants in Texas after selling the other eight operations after development.

Alamo 1 – located south of San Antonio – manages 180,000 solar panels that are connected to nearby transformers, meters, and transmission facilities on a land of 445 acres, while Alamo 2 is located east of San Antonio near residential area. Alamo 1 and Alamo 2 solar panels can supply power to 10,000 households for one year.

It sold the rest eight projects to local entities including Berkshire Hathaway and power supplier Con Edison. Last year, OCI sold a 200-megawatt solar project in northeast Austin, Texas, to a well-known petrochemical company Buckeye Partners, for an estimated amount of more than $20 billion.

OCI has developed solar energy facilities with a total power capacity of 700 megawatt, which 300,000 people can use for a year, in Texas since early 2010. Texas is now one of major photovoltaic energy producing states in the U.S. thanks to its abundant amount of sunshine, vast land, and less rain.

Charles Kim, president and chief executive of OCI Solar Power, told Maeil Business Newspaper that the company will develop more solar energy facilities in the U.S. on expectations for the further growth of the green energy market in the U.S. under the Biden administration.

Kim expects that the share of renewable energy in the total energy use in the U.S. would jump to 30 percent in 2035 from the current 3 percent, and Texas would emerge as the largest renewable energy market in the U.S. This year alone, Texas is expected to add 5.4-gigawatt solar power generation, which is about 20 percent of total installment in U.S.

OCI Solar Power is currently developing five new solar energy projects with a total of 1,000-megawatt capacity. The Korean solar energy developer will develop solar energy facilities mostly in three cities in Texas – Dallas, San Antonio, and Houston.

OCI’s polysilicon production technology is more environmentally friendly than Chinese rivals that rely on coal to produce polysilicon, Kim said, expecting more growth in its business in the U.S.

By Na Hyun-joon and Lee Eun-joo

[ⓒ Pulse by Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]