Hanwha Q Cells
Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 3 November 2026 · 7 sources
Korean-owned maker of solar cells, panels and batteries, with German roots.
Hanwha Q Cells' supply chain was linked to forced labour in 2023, which it has only partly acted on, and it has no full independent audit.
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Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 0 of 6 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It has 4 red flags: no evidence of a living wage, unaudited production in high-risk countries, forced or child labour and silicon it can't trace to the smelter. Two or more red flags means a poor grade.
- It isn't Harm on record: the most serious problem on its record (forced labour link, last recorded in 2023) was a link through a supplier, which the company has only partly acted on.
- Lacks transparency is still a poor grade: in supply chains like this, workers who can't be seen to be treated fairly are usually underpaid or unprotected.
Good requirements 0 of 6
- Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: no evidence
- Not met: Respects worker rightsMost of its products are made in China, South Korea and Malaysia, where unions are heavily restricted, and it has no full supply chain audit.
- Not met: Supply chain independently audited or certified, or at least 80% made in countries with strong labour standards
- Not met: No child or forced labour findings or links
- Not met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that list
- Not met: Traces the silicon in its panels to the smelter or quartz mine, outside Xinjiang (for batteries and inverters: traces its battery metals to the mine)
Red flags 4
- Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wageShown to explain the grade. It isn't one of the 2 red flags that set it.
- Red flag: Made mostly in countries with poor worker rights, without a full independent audit of its supply chain
- Red flag: Forced, slave or child labour found in or linked to its supply chain
- Red flag: Relies on silicon it can't trace to the smelterShown to explain the grade. It isn't one of the 2 red flags that set it.
- Red flag: Fails its category's raw-material check (means Lacks transparency)
Stars it would earn as Good
None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars
Where it's made
Hanwha Q Cells names some of the countries it makes in: China, South Korea, Malaysia and the United States. The rest is shown as where solar panels and batteries are usually made.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| China | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| South Korea | No guarantee of rights | Close to a living wage | Low |
| Malaysia | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| United States | Systematic violations | Below a living wage | Low |
| VietnamUsual for the industry | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
Evidence
What we found
- Risk across the industry, not a finding about this company: about a third of the world's polysilicon and silicon metal is made in Xinjiang, where state-run labour transfers amount to forced labour, and home batteries rely on cobalt, lithium and other metals linked to child and forced labour.
- Modern slavery statement
- Relies on polysilicon and silicon metal, about a third of which is made in Xinjiang, where the government moves Uyghur workers into factories that no independent auditor can visit. It hasn't shown any steps to trace the silicon in its panels back to the smelter, so it's graded Lacks transparency until it does.
Research notes Hanwha says Q Cells makes cells and modules in South Korea (Jincheon), Malaysia, China and the US, but gives no split and doesn't say which plants supply Australia; its page is dated 2020. Qcells says its polysilicon is sourced outside China and requires suppliers to give affidavits and allow traceability inspections, but it names no polysilicon or wafer suppliers, holds no Solar Stewardship Initiative certificate and publishes no supplier list. It also sells home batteries, which are not traced.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Australian Modern Slavery Register | Listed | Hanwha Energy Australia lodges joint modern slavery statements (2024, 2025) that list Hanwha Q Cells Australia; Q Cells Australia lodged its own for 2022. View |
| US forced-labour import bans (UFLPA Entity List, CBP Withhold Release Orders) | Not listed | Hanwha Q Cells is not on the US forced labour (UFLPA) Entity List (checked November 2026). View |
| Solar Stewardship Initiative certified sites | Not listed | Hanwha Q Cells has no site on the Solar Stewardship Initiative's list of certified sites (checked November 2026). View |
| Business & Human Rights Resource Centre | Problem found | Sheffield Hallam University's 2023 Over-Exposed assessment rated Qcells (Hanwha) at very high exposure to Uyghur forced labour (as reported by Ethical Consumer). View |
Confirmed issues 1
Only confirmed problems are listed, and old ones drop off after 10 to 15 years. A problem the company has fully put right no longer counts against it, and nor does one it finds and is fixing itself. How problems are counted
| Last recorded | What happened | Made amends? |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Link through a supplierSheffield Hallam University's Over-Exposed report (2023) rated Qcells (Hanwha) at very high exposure to Uyghur forced labour, and Bloomberg (2024) found two of its main Chinese wafer suppliers took polysilicon from US-sanctioned Xinjiang producers. Source · search the archive | PartlyQcells says it stopped using one supplier in 2021 and phased it out in 2022 for failing traceability, and uses affidavits and inspections; it hasn't published its wafer suppliers. |
Unconfirmed reports
Credible reports that haven't been confirmed by a regulator, completed investigation or the company. They're shown for your information and don't affect the grade.
- US Customs detained Qcells' Korean-made solar cells under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act over suspected Chinese polysilicon, and the company furloughed 1,000 Georgia workers (PV Tech, 2025-2026). Source
Sources and actions
Sources 7
Show all 7 sources
- Ethical solar panels (Ethical Consumer) · search the archive · Over-Exposed 2023: Qcells (Hanwha) very high exposure to Uyghur Region
- Solar Stewardship Initiative certified sites · search the archive · Hanwha Q Cells not among certified sites
- UFLPA Entity List (US Department of Homeland Security) · search the archive · Hanwha Q Cells not listed
- Qcells resumes normal US solar module production after UFLPA detainments (PV Tech, 2026) · search the archive · CBP detained Korean-made cells over suspected Chinese polysilicon; Georgia production resumed March 2026
- Solar firm gets millions in US tax credits despite Chinese labor questions (Bloomberg via AJOT, 2024) · search the archive · Two Chinese wafer suppliers took polysilicon from sanctioned Xinjiang producers; Qcells response
- Hanwha Q CELLS smart solar technology (Hanwha, 2020) · search the archive · Plants in South Korea (Jincheon), Malaysia, China and the US
Published by Hanwha Q Cells or its owner
- Hanwha Energy Australia modern slavery statement 2025 · search the archive · Joint statement listing Hanwha Q Cells Australia
Company details
- Owned by
- Hanwha Solutions
- Headquarters
- South Korea
- Last researched
- 3 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Hanwha Q Cells ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/hanwha-q-cells, last researched 3 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means
Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Hanwha Q Cells.