Chinese battery manufacturer Hithium and Samsung C&T Engineering & Construction (Samsung C&T) have penned a new agreement targeting around 10GWh of battery energy storage system (BESS) capacity globally.
The agreement was formalised and signed at Hithium’s headquarters in Xiamen, China, and aims to support the global pipeline, streamline supply chain integration, and facilitate resource sharing.
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Nazar Yi, vice-president of Hithium, said the collaboration will leverage each company’s expertise to help address the evolving energy storage landscape.
“This collaboration will not only strengthen our capabilities but also accelerate the deployment of innovative energy solutions on a global scale,” Yi added.
Hithium bolsters international manufacturing capacity with plants in US, Saudi Arabia
Hithium specialises in stationary energy storage products for utility-scale, commercial, and industrial applications. Since its inception in 2019, the company has expanded to several international markets and has shipped over 50GWh of BESS products to date. It also claims to have a top five global market share.
To cater for the growing interest in BESS products, the company has stepped up its manufacturing capacity in key markets such as the US and Saudi Arabia.
In July 2024, Hithium announced it would invest US$100 million in a facility in Mesquite, Texas, with a 10GWh annual production capacity. The BESS manufacturer said the factory will produce battery modules and complete systems for the BESS market and will occupy 483,874 square feet.
Meanwhile, in the Middle East, Hithium unveiled plans to build a 5GWh production plant in Saudi Arabia in October. This new plant would complement its newly revealed BESS product, which is suitable for use in desert conditions.
The plant will be built via a joint venture with engineering solutions company MANAT, called Hithium MANAT. Nabilah Al-Tunisi, the founder and owner of MANAT, will be the CEO of the new joint venture company.
Within the MENA region, in May, Hithium launched a cooperation with Turkish engineering company Kontek Enerji’s battery storage subsidiary Maxxen, through which the pair seek to promote energy storage systems and establish a production facility in the country.
Samsung C&T’s support for the global BESS market
Samsung C&T, oriented towards the construction of large-scale projects, has a global presence in the renewable energy and storage market through various partnerships.
One such partnership is with Australian power and communications infrastructure provider Genus. The company, in a joint venture with Samsung C&T, was awarded three contracts for the engineering, procurement, construction (EPC), and commissioning for the balance of plant scope and BESS installation for a 600MW/1,600MWh BESS as part of the Melbourne Renewable Energy Hub (MREH) in Victoria.
The organisation also secured a three-year EPC and O&M contract for Kepco Mangilao Solar’s 88.8MW solar-plus-storage project in Guam, a US-owned island territory in Micronesia, the Western Pacific. Plans for the project include a 32MWh BESS.
