(Yicai Global) Sept. 21 -- A unit of Powerway Group will invest about USD80 million in solar power station projects in Vietnam, marking the expansion of the diversified Chinese industrial firm's local business from solar component production to power station construction and operation.

Directors at Powerway Alloy Material agreed to develop two solar plants, each with 50 megawatts of capacity, in the country's Tay Ninh province along with the required transmission lines, the Ningbo-based firm said in a statement.

Construction will take place from this October until next June. Powerway will also pay USD17 million to acquire all equity in HCG Tay Ninh Solar Power and Hoang Thai Gia Trust Investment and Management, the two companies that will serve as constructor and operator for the projects.

Insufficient power supply in recent years has been a drag on Vietnam's economic development with the country's government putting in place more favorable policies to support new projects.

The firm entered the Vietnamese market in 2016 with the purchase of a solar panel component manufacturer. The company carries out research and development, production and sales of new energy photovoltaic mono-crystalline and multi-crystalline batteries and parts.

Editor: William Clegg