Vietnam-based solar solutions company TOYO has announced an expansion of its solar cell production facility in Ethiopia, increasing its capacity from 2 GW to 4 GW.

TOYO will invest $47 million to expand production. The company is planning to lease a 28,000 sq m facility in Hawassa, Ethiopia, adjacent to its existing automated production site.

The company has completed the construction of the first phase of the solar cell facility, which has a production capacity of 2 GW. TOYO is conducting equipment installation, testing, and trial runs at the site.

Formal production is expected to begin early in the second quarter of 2025.

TOYO said the expansion is in response to global demand for its high-performance solar cells, having received significant interest and orders for its solar cells even before completing the first phase of the manufacturing facility.

The expansion is scheduled to commence in April this year, with construction expected to be completed by July. The company expects to begin production at the expanded facility by August 2025.

The company has also completed the first phase of construction of its solar cell plant in Phu Tho Province, Vietnam. The facility has a capacity of 4 GW and commenced commercial production in October 2023.

According to the latest International Energy Agency’s World Energy Outlook, manufacturing capacity for solar modules is growing rapidly and has the potential to surpass 1,200 GW per year by the end of this decade.

Also, according to the report, solar manufacturing is currently highly concentrated in five countries, led by China, accounting for over 90% of global capacity. The other four are Vietnam (5% of the global market), India (3%), Malaysia (3%), and Thailand (2%). The next five leading solar manufacturers – the United States, Korea, Cambodia, Türkiye, and Chinese Taipei – each account for around 1% of the global total, as does the European Union.