Two Chinese solar firms eye investment opportunities in Andhra Pradesh

Hyderabad: Two Chinese firms on Friday showed interest to explore the possibility of making investments in the solar power sector in Andhra Pradesh.

Trina Solar informed Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, who is in the last leg of his China visit, at a meeting in Shanghai that it is looking at opportunities for setting up a manufacturing unit for solar power panels, the CM's office said in a statement.

At the meeting attended by Indian Ambassador to China Ashok K Kantha and the country's Consul General in Shanghai Naveen Srivastav, Naidu asked the company to identify a suitable location for the facility, it said.

In another meeting, JA Solar's president Xie Jian said the company, which designs, develops, manufactures and sells solar cell and solar module products, is weighing the option of establishing a 500 MW plant.

The statement said TCL Corporation and Nanjing-based construction giant Jiangsu Provincial Construction Group Company also expressed interest in exploring investment opportunities in Andhra Pradesh.

"We want to build iconic buildings in Andhra Pradesh and Amaravathi (the proposed capital of the state)," the Chief Minister was quoted as saying. Naidu said his intention is to make the state an electronics manufacturing hub.

The AP delegation, led by the Chief Minister, later attended a round-table meeting in Shanghai on business opportunities in the state, with Naidu expressing happiness over Chinese companies evincing interest to invest in Andhra Pradesh.