In what's being described as a win-win-win venture, a three-way agreement has been signed between Austin-based Applied Nanotech Holdings Inc, a world leader in inks and pastes for printed electronics, China's Sichuan Yinhe Chemical Co Ltd and Silicon Valley-based Solexel Inc, a solar cell manufacturer.

The agreement covers advanced solar paste technology being jointly developed and commercialized by the three parties.

The relationship has been in the works for years. Applied Nanotech signed an exclusive agreement for its solar ink and paste technology for silicon-based solar cells with Yinhe Chemical in 2011 and the latter completed its high-volume production plant at its high-tech industrial park in Mianyang, Sichuan province, in late 2012.