LDK Solar Co., Ltd. (NYSE: LDK), a Chinese manufacturer of multicrystalline solar wafers and products, announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) for collaborative research and development activities related to silicon materials and photovoltaic devices.
NREL is DOE’s primary laboratory for renewable energy and energy efficiency research and development.
The objectives for the collaborative activities are the investigation of silicon feedstock related issues, development of standards for solar grade silicon and evaluation methods, and research on crystallization technologies and commercial implementation.
Settlement with Q-Cells
In a separate announcement, LDK Solar said it has reached an agreement with Germany’s Q-Cells SE (QCE.DE) regarding an existing solar wafer supply contract that the two companies entered into in December of 2007. LDK Solar has agreed to an early repayment of the prepayment of $244.5 million Q-Cells made pursuant to the supply agreement.
In November 2009, Q-Cells said it was terminating a 6-gigawatts (GW) supply contract with LDK, because LDK "did not fulfil significant contractual obligations." At that time Q-Cells said it would attempt to recoup the prepayments made on the contract.
The confrontation likely undermined the joint venture formed by the two companies in April 2009 to pursue project development in Europe and China.
But in December, the companies said they resolved their differences surrounding the supply agreement, stating that joint business activities would be unchanged, though there would be greater flexibility in the delivery schedule for supply shipments.
This week, LDK Solar said it will repay the prepayment in its entirety, which currently stands at $224.9 million, by the end of 2011. Payments totalling $135 million will be made in 2010. The current repayment will be funded by restricted cash, which was previously earmarked for such transactions.
LDK Solar said both companies reached an agreement on pricing terms to continue the supply agreement through 2018.
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