Producing polysilicon for the photovoltaic industry in Europe remains a major industrial challenge, as its manufacture relies on highly energy-intensive, ultra-high-purity processes that require consistently low-cost and reliable electricity as well as deeply integrated chemical supply chains – advantages that are already firmly established and significantly more cost-competitive in regions such as China than within the European industrial landscape.
Despite these difficulties, the founder and CEO of Dutch startup Resilicon, Remco Rijn, is confident that Europe can still establish a competitive and strategically important foothold in polysilicon production by leveraging low-carbon electricity, advances in process efficiency, and a more circular, localized supply chain model. He argues that, while Europe may struggle to match existing cost structures in Asia, it can instead differentiate through cleaner production methods and supply security aligned with the continent’s broader energy transition and industrial resilience goals.
Resilicon is planning to build a polysilicon factory within the Groningen Sea Ports area of northeastern Netherlands. For this project, it already secured over €14 million ($16.3 million) in funding and the support of the Dutch government.
