On February 2nd, FIRST released an announcement stating that the company has signed the Partnership Agreement of Jiaxing Deke Equity Investment Partnership (Limited Partnership) with Tongxin Derun Venture Capital (Hainan) Co., Ltd. and other partners to jointly establish Jiaxing Deke Equity Investment Partnership (Limited Partnership).
According to the announcement, the total subscribed capital contribution of the partnership is RMB 32.11 million. As a limited partner (LP), FIRST will contribute RMB 25 million in self-owned funds, accounting for a 77.86% shareholding ratio. Tongxin Derun Venture Capital (Hainan) Co., Ltd. will serve as the general partner (GP) of the partnership.
It is reported that the partnership will mainly conduct equity investment in enterprises engaged in flexible thin-film gallium arsenide (GaAs) solar cells and other flexible GaAs thin-film products. FIRST stated that this investment in a private equity fund in cooperation with a professional institution aims to leverage the professional investment experience and resource advantages of the institution to enhance its understanding and interaction with the GaAs industrial chain, connect richer industrial resources, and accelerate the R&D and application of new-type solar cell encapsulation materials.
Data shows that the photovoltaic cells currently used on satellites can be basically divided into two technical routes: silicon and gallium arsenide. At present, flexible thin-film GaAs cells are the mainstream performance route for aerospace flexible solar arrays, featuring high conversion efficiency (about 30%), radiation resistance, thinness, lightweight and flexibility, and low attenuation. They are suitable for high-value missions such as medium-and high-orbit communication satellites and deep-space exploration, and commercial aerospace is expected to drive a surge in demand.
As a leading enterprise in the photovoltaic encapsulant industry, FIRST has rich technical reserves. In terms of product layout, it is mainly committed to the R&D, production and sales of thin-film functional polymer materials, and currently has three divisions: the Photovoltaic Materials Division, the Electronic Materials Division, and the Functional Film Materials Division. The foray into GaAs solar cells and other flexible GaAs thin-film products this time will form business synergy with its existing businesses, and the company is expected to benefit from the subsequent development of space solar power.
Source：EnergyTrend