3Sun

3Sun was established on January 4, 2010, as a joint venture among Enel Green Power, Sharp Corporation, and STMicroelectronics, each owning 33% of the shares. The total operation amounted to 409 million euros, including 210 million in share capital, 150 in project financing, and 49 in contributions from the Italian state.[3]

3Sun was inaugurated on July 8, 2011. It has operations at the M6 plant contributed by STMicroelectronics in Catania, with a goal to become the largest solar panel factory in Europe[4]. The company's initial production capacity was set at 160 MW per year, and the first phase of activity involved 280 employees.[5]

Between 2011 and 2014, the company undertook a project, financed with over 27 million euros of ERDF funds from the European Union, to build a photovoltaic cell and module plant in Catania that employed thin-layer technology. The project generated an economic value estimated at 200 million euros for the Etna Valley.[6]

Sharp contributes the amorphous silicon multi-junction thin-film technology, Enel Green Power manages the commercial distribution on a national and international scale, and STMicroelectronics provides personnel specialized in processes and research and development, as well as the inverters.[7]

Since March 6, 2015, Enel Green Power has held full ownership of 3Sun and has employed the joint venture's personnel with STMicroelectronics, which continues to provide the grid connection technology. In 2015, 3Sun exceeded the production quota of 5 million panels[2][8] After producing a total of 6.8 million units in 6 years – equivalent to over 900 MW – the production of thin film panels ended at the end of 2017. In August 2018, the manufacturing of Hetero Junction Technology (HJT)[9][10] bifacial panels began, making 3Sun the world's most automated plant in the sector, with the ability to operate continuously – 24 hours a day, 365 days a year[11][12] The first HJT cells were produced in February 2019, while mass production began in August of the same year.[13]

In April 2022, Enel Green Power signed a grant agreement with the European Commission for subsidized financing, as part of the EU's first Innovation Fund call for large-scale projects, contributing to the development of the TANGO (iTaliAN pv Giga factOry) project[14][15]. This involves the construction of an industrial-scale production facility[16] for the manufacturing of innovative, sustainable and high-performance photovoltaic (PV) modules at the 3Sun solar panel factory in Catania.[17] The factory's expansion is set to result in a 15-fold increase in production capacity, from the current 200 MW to 3 GW per year[18][19]. This growth is also expected to create 1,000 direct and indirect jobs by 2024.[20]

• Enel Green Power
• Sharp Corporation
• STMicroelectronics

• Official website