United PV forms investment tie-up

They will also seek investments in energy-efficiency technologies and mobile power charging stations.

They will start with an initial investment of 601 million yuan ($86.9 million), with financial services provider China Zheyin to contribute just 1 million yuan of the total, according to a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange.

Zhaolian Lvyi, a solar R&D firm and consultancy, will pay its 600 million yuan contribution in stages through December 2027, depending on capital requirements.

The two partners will soon set up an investment committee to discuss new opportunities, as well as approaches to post-investment management. They did not disclose additional details of the partnership.

United Photovoltaics has finalized a number of major solar investments since the beginning of the year.

In February, a group subsidiary moved forward on the development of a 50 MW array shaped like a panda, in northern China’s Shanxi province.

And in late January, United PV agreed to buy 82 MW of operational PV capacity at six undisclosed locations throughout the U.K.

It currently has a number of framework agreements in place to build massive amounts of solar capacity through the end of this decade, including a 3 GW development deal with one of its major shareholders, China Merchants Group.

Its total installed PV capacity reached 996 MW at the end of June 2016, up 56.4% from a year earlier.