SoloPower, a U.S.-based thin-film solar photovoltaic cell producer, will invest $125 million in Gwangju to build a plant to produce CIGS, semiconductor material composed of copper, indium, gallium, and selenium, said CTI Co., a local partner of the U.S. firm.

CTI officials said the two companies had held ceremony early this week in New York, attended by SoloPower CEO Robert Campbell and CTI chairman Lee Yong-kyu and CEO Song Dong-jeong.

Campbell revealed that his company will also build a research and development center in Gwangju as part of its efforts to lead the solar power industry.

“With the company’s plants in Portland, Oregon, and San Jose, California, the plant in Gwangju will help supply global demand for CIGS, the next generation of solar modules,” Campbell was quoted as saying in CTI’s press release.

According to SoloPower, CIGS makes up for the weak points of silicon-based solar modules, such as their weight and vulnerability to heat. It added that the company was the only firm that could mass-produce CIGS using a wet processing system.

By Choi In-jeong (injeongchoi@heraldcorp.com)