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Applied Materials has landed another complete solar panel manufacturing deal that will use large substrate technology. This time the deal is with T-Solar Global S.A. of Spain and will be Europe's first thin film solar module production line using ultra-large 5.7m² (2.2m x 2.6m) glass panels, according to Applied. The facility is expected to become operational by mid-2008.

"This investment, promoted by a consortium of independent investors led by Marcial Portela, with Isolux Corsán construction, engineering and service group as the main shareholder, capitalizes on the rapidly expanding market in Spain for photovoltaic installations,” said Juan Laso, general manager of T-Solar. “Large-area thin film panels are ideally suited for these open space applications due to their performance in high temperature conditions and cost advantages for large-scale installations."

"Based on our extensive experience in providing manufacturing systems for the flat panel display (FPD) industry, we expect similar cost benefits for the solar industry in moving to larger area substrates,” said Dr. Mark Pinto, senior vice president and general manager of Applied's New Business and New Products Group.