Pick the engineering stories that matter and get them in your inbox.
Access expert insights, exclusive content, and a deeper dive into engineering and innovation all with fewer ads or a completely ad-free experience.
All Rights Reserved, IE Media, Inc.
Follow Us On
Access expert insights, exclusive content, and a deeper dive into engineering and innovation all with fewer ads or a completely ad-free experience.
All Rights Reserved, IE Media, Inc.
SINGULUS will supply SpaceX with a turnkey solar cell production line for its Starmind satellite network in Texas.
SINGULUS's first production line for SpaceX is worth more than €60 million and is due in the first half of 2027.
The wider partnership includes developing high-performance HJT solar cells and manufacturing equipment, with multiple additional lines planned.
The cells are intended for SpaceX's Starmind satellites, which are designed to run computing payloads using solar power generated in orbit.
SpaceX has signed a supply deal worth more than $69 million with German equipment maker SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES to build a production line for high-efficiency heterojunction (HJT) solar cells, securing a manufacturing route for its planned Starmind satellite network.
The first turnkey production line is scheduled for delivery in the first half of 2027. It is part of a wider strategic partnership under which SINGULUS plans to supply multiple additional lines as SpaceX accelerates satellite manufacturing at its Bastrop, Texas, facility.
SINGULUS disclosed the contract on November 10, saying the partnership will involve developing both high-performance solar cells and the equipment needed to manufacture them. The company said production would scale to support more than 100 gigawatts (GW) of production equipment, although it did not specify the output capacity of the first line.
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk subsequently clarified the scale of the order in a post on X, saying the company had ordered 100 GW per year of HJT solar manufacturing equipment from SINGULUS in Germany. He linked the order to Starmind, describing its ambition as creating a “sentient sun.”
SpaceX Senior Vice President of Starlink Mike Nicolls said the partnership provides a manufacturing path for solar cells intended for its Starmind satellites.
HJT technology combines a crystalline silicon wafer with thin layers of amorphous silicon. These layers help reduce the loss of electrical charges at the wafer’s surfaces, improving the cell’s ability to convert sunlight into electricity.
Manufacturing the cells requires several processes, including wafer cleaning, thin-film deposition, and thermal treatment. SINGULUS develops equipment for these stages, combining wet-chemical processing with vacuum coating technologies such as physical vapor deposition (PVD) and plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD).
SpaceX has ordered 100 GW/year of HJT solar manufacturing equipment from Singulus in Germany.
This is for Starmind to create a sentient sun. https://t.co/umtNyF9M7g
Its production platforms are designed for high-throughput solar cell manufacturing. The company says its equipment supports HJT and other crystalline silicon cell technologies, including TOPCon and interdigitated back-contact designs.
The agreement gives SpaceX access to SINGULUS’s manufacturing expertise while establishing a route to produce the cells at its own Texas facility. Neither company has disclosed the planned efficiency of the cells or the production capacity of the initial line.
SpaceX’s Starmind program centers on satellites carrying computing payloads that use solar energy generated in orbit. The company’s published specifications for its AI1 satellite describe a deployed height of 30 meters, a wingspan of 75 meters, and a computing payload drawing up to 250 kilowatts at peak and 175 kilowatts on average.
The satellites are designed to operate in sun-synchronous orbit and transmit data to the ground through laser links connected to the Starlink network, according to SpaceX.
The scale of the planned network is substantial. In its 2026 securities filing, SpaceX outlined a long-term ambition to deploy up to 100 GW of power to orbit annually. The company said reaching that level would require thousands of launches each year, while noting that it could build a commercially viable business at considerably lower deployment rates.
SINGULUS said its strategic partnership with SpaceX began in March 2026. SpaceX provided significant funding to the German company that month and again in October through a subordinated secured loan.
The first production line is expected in the first half of 2027, as SpaceX prepares to expand satellite manufacturing in Texas.
With over a decade-long career in journalism, Neetika Walter has worked with The Economic Times, ANI, and Hindustan Times, covering politics, business, technology, and the clean energy sector. Passionate about contemporary culture, books, poetry, and storytelling, she brings depth and insight to her writing. When she isn’t chasing stories, she’s likely lost in a book or enjoying the company of her dogs.
Premium
Follow
