Y.G. Lee
Executive Vice President Jusung Engineering

Forecast for the solar energy market vary widely. While some depict a future full of possibilities, others see obstacles standing in the way of progress, but there is one thing for certain: the solar energy market is going to continue to grow.

The trend has been demonstrated by the steep growth curve of a Korean solar energy pioneer. Jusung Engineering has recorded impressive growth since founded in 1996. Korea’s largest manufacturer in the solar equipment industry started off as a manufacturer of chemical vapor deposition, a core technology used for semiconductors and liquid crystal displays. Now they are mainly focused on solar cells, also known as photovoltaic cells. These cells, in turn, are assembled to constitute solar panels. The solid state electrical device converts the energy of sunlight directly into electricity.

As recent as a few years ago, solar panels were an uncommon sight. Today, an increasing number of homeowners have discovered that improved technology and government incentives are at last making solar energy a practical alternative to carbon-based fuels. In the future, it could well be that a house without solar panels will seem strange!

Earlier generations of solar panels almost universally utilized crystalline silicon cells, also called wafers or bulk cells. However, the cost of manufacturing crystalline cells is prohibitively high due to their dependence on silicon. An alternative to crystalline silicon cells is the use of thin-film solar cells, which utilize very little to no silicon (1% or less). In general, thin-film solar technologies hold promise, but today they remain less energy efficient than crystalline silicon technologies.

The price of solar panels is falling rapidly because of technology improvements, economies of scale and, most importantly, the falling cost of polysilicon. Once grid parity is achieved, the industry will go through explosive growth. Grid parity is the point at which solar electricity is equal to or cheaper than grid power achieved by traditional resources.

Although the domestic market has grown, Korea still remains in the early stages when it comes to alternative energy. Bigger opportunities are presented by overseas markets. Jusung has exploited such opportunities to gain 60 percent of his revenue from overseas markets.

Jusung has built their success by providing capital efficient and innovative solutions through partnership. The keywords of their success are innovation and partnership. Quality alone cannot guarantee success in this competitive market. Integration and alliance should be added to create a success recipe.

Jusung has built their success by providing capital efficient and innovative solutions through partnership. The keywords of their success are innovation and partnership. Quality alone cannot guarantee success in this competitive market.