Hanwha Solutions appoints former GE Renewable Energy exec as Q Cells’ new CTO

Hanwha Solutions announced this week it has hired a former executive at GE Renewable Energy and appointed her as the new chief technology officer of its solar panel unit, Hanhwa Q Cells.

Danielle Merfeld was the vice president and CTO at GE Renewable Energy, an American renewable energy firm that is also a subsidiary of General Electric. Her addition to the team is said to be a strategic move to speed up Hanhwa Q Cells’ research and development (R&D) in the field of next-generation solar, wind, and other renewable energy.

As per Yonhap News Agency, she will be managing the Q Cells' global R&D network that will link South Korea, Germany, and the United States to fuse Hanwha Solution's RD capabilities and further boost its tech competitiveness in the solar panel sector.

Merfeld is also expected to lead Hanhwa’s "tandem cell technology" development, an R&D project being funded by the European Union (EU) with the aim of creating the next generation of solar cells that can be produced commercially by the year 2026. This project includes a plan to set up a pilot line at the European headquarters of Q Cells which is located in Thalheim, Bitterfeld-Wolfen in the southwestern part of Berlin.

"I look forward to helping Qcells continue to deliver innovative new energy solutions and am inspired by their historic investment in US clean energy manufacturing capability," the newly-appointed CTO of Hanhwa Q Cells said in a press release. "Q Cells is transforming bold ideas into action. I intend to use my experience in advanced energy solutions to build out R&D capability in the U.S. to serve growing demand and complement the global R&D team."

Meanwhile, prior to her CTO stint at GE Renewable Energy, Merfeld also held the vice president and general manager role at GE Global Research. She holds a degree in electrical engineering and graduated from the University of Notre Dame. Merfeld later secured her Ph.D. from Northwestern University.