Haitian Water Group plans to invest CNY 800 million ($118 million) in a photovoltaic conductive silver paste research and manufacturing project in Sichuan province. The expansion follows its acquisition of Heraeus Group’s photovoltaic silver paste business in 2025.
The Shanghai-listed company said on Oct. 30 that it had signed an investment agreement with the administrative committee of Sichuan Tianfu New Area. The project will establish a materials research and development center and manufacturing headquarters, with at least CNY 300 million allocated to fixed assets. Funding will come from internal resources and external financing.
Haitian Water’s wholly owned subsidiary, Sichuan Haitian New Materials, will carry out the project. It has registered capital of CNY 400 million, and the parent company will assume joint liability for obligations under the agreement.
Development is planned in two phases. The first would use about 8,000 square meters at Fengqigu Industrial Park for an R&D center and pilot production lines. The second would involve building a larger facility on approximately 3.1 hectares of industrial land in Yongxing, Tianfu New Area. Plans include commercial production lines, facilities for auxiliary paste materials, warehouses, offices, and an R&D and sales center aimed at overseas markets.
Haitian Water has not disclosed annual production capacity or a commissioning timetable. The land acquisition is still subject to a public tender, and the company said financing, construction and production ramp-up remain uncertain.
The company entered the photovoltaic materials market through its April 2025 acquisition of Heraeus’ photovoltaic silver paste business, which included two Shanghai-based companies and Heraeus Photovoltaics Singapore Pte. Ltd. The acquired operations provided production and R&D capabilities and an international customer base. They now form the basis of Haitian Photovoltaics, which has manufacturing and R&D operations in China and technical services in Singapore.
In the first half of 2026, Haitian Water’s new energy and advanced materials business generated CNY 2.11 billion in revenue, equivalent to 73.17% of the company’s total sales. The project’s profitability could be affected by competition and cost pressures in China’s photovoltaic supply chain, silver price fluctuations and changes in solar cell metallization technologies.
Sources: pv magazine.