SolarEdge Opens 2GWh Battery Cell Facility

SolarEdge and its subsidiary, Kokam, announced the opening of a two gigawatt-hour (GWh)  battery cell manufacturing facility in the Eumseong Innovation City of Chungcheongbuk-Do, South Korea. The facility, called “Sella 2” is currently producing test cells for certification, with ramp-up expected during the second half of 2022. Sella 2 will enable SolarEdge to have its own supply of lithium-ion batteries andto develop new battery cell chemistries and technologies.

The facility is planned to manufacture battery cells for SolarEdge’s residential solar-attached batteries as well as battery cells for a variety of industries, including mobile applications, energy stationary storage solutions (ESS) and UPS applications. It includes also the storage needs of its e-Mobility division based on the 2019 acquisition of the Italian S.M.R.E. Last year, the e-Mobility division has been selected by Fiat to supply full electrical powertrain units and batteries for the production of the Fiat E-Ducato light commercial vehicle.

Zvi Lando, CEO of SolarEdge, said that the opening of Sella 2, “Allows us to own key processes in the development and manufacturing of advanced energy storage solutions, while further securing the resilience of our supply chain.” SolarEdge provides smart energy solutions, including an intelligent inverter solutions to optimize and manage photovoltaic (PV) systems. Its 2021 revenues totalled $1.96 billion, up 34.6% compared with 2021.

Huawei and SolarEdge Patent License Agreement

Earlier this month it has concluded a four years dispute with Huawei Technologies, over claimed patent infringements made by Huawei. In 2018, SolarEdge had filed three lawsuits for patent infringement against Huawei Technologies and its distributors in Germany regarding DC optimized inverter technologies. On May 19, 2022, SolarEdge and Huawei have agreed on a global patent license agreement between the two companies. The agreement includes a cross license that covers patents relating to both companies’ products. The specific terms of the agreement are confidential, but it ends lawsuits between the companies that were pending in Germany and China.