Qcells targets U.S. AI power demand with solar project
July 10 (Asia Today) -- Qcells is accelerating its push into the North American renewable energy market as investment in power infrastructure grows rapidly amid the expansion of artificial intelligence data centers in the United States.
The Hanwha unit said Friday it will handle engineering, procurement and construction for Atlas Energy Park, one of the largest solar and energy storage complexes in the United States. The project will be built in La Paz County, Ariz.
Atlas Energy Park will include 2.8 gigawatts of solar generation capacity and 5.7 gigawatt-hours of energy storage capacity by 2028. The complex will consist of 14 solar and energy storage projects and cover an area about 22 times the size of Yeouido, Seoul's main financial district.
Qcells will handle engineering, procurement and construction for all projects in the complex and supply all solar modules.
The company completed the sale in May of two solar power plants with a combined capacity of 357 megawatts after carrying out their early-stage development and construction. The deal is seen as evidence that Qcells has expanded beyond equipment supply into project development, construction and asset sales.
The company's competitiveness is backed by its U.S. supply chain. Qcells operates Solar Hub, a solar manufacturing complex in Georgia, giving it module supply capacity. It has also built a supply chain for energy storage equipment.
Industry analysts say companies with U.S. production bases are gaining a stronger advantage as Washington expands policies favoring domestically made equipment.
Analysts also expect Qcells' expansion in North America to help improve earnings. Hana Securities projected Hanwha Solutions' second-quarter operating profit this year at 230.7 billion won, about $153 million, roughly 29% above market consensus.
"The oversupply of solar modules in the United States is easing, and prices are continuing to rise, while the expansion of local production capacity in the United States will drive earnings improvement," said Yoon Jae-sung, an analyst at Hana Securities.
Analysts say AI will further accelerate growth in renewable energy demand.
"Power demand is structurally increasing because of AI data centers, electrification and manufacturing reshoring, making solar power and energy storage key pillars of global power infrastructure," said Han Byung-hwa, an analyst at Eugene Investment & Securities. "In particular, rising power consumption by AI data centers will continue to increase demand for large-scale projects combining solar power and energy storage."
Qcells has completed or is pursuing more than 11 gigawatts of solar and more than 6 gigawatt-hours of energy storage projects in North America, expanding its local business base.
"Atlas Energy Park is a symbolic project that once again demonstrates Qcells' EPC capability, U.S. supply chain and comprehensive business capacity from development to construction and asset sales," said Chris Hodrick, head of Qcells' EPC business division.
"We will lead the growth of the North American renewable energy market by increasing customer value and business competitiveness through integrated solutions that combine solar power and energy storage," Hodrick said.
-- Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI
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This story was originally published July 10, 2026 at 5:54 PM.