News

With the photovoltaic industry growing at a compound annual growth rate of 40 percent through 2010, iSuppli Corp. is projecting that the global production of PV cells will reach 12GW by 2010, up from 3.5GW in 2007. To reach that figure, as many as 400 production lines with at least 1MW of PV cell production per year will be established, a four-fold increase from about 90 to 100 production lines in existence at the end of 2007, iSuppli said. Importantly, iSuppli sees the number of 1GW scale fabs to grow as part of the photovoltaic industry’s cost reduction strategies.

A new study by clean-tech research publisher Clean Edge and Co-op America, a non-profit green-economy organization, has suggested that the U.S. could attain production of 10% of its electricity requirements via solar power by the year 2025. The Utility Solar Assessment (USA) study provides a roadmap for use by utilities and regulators, as well as solar power companies, which outlines the necessity for involvement of utilities in scaling solar power in order to reach the 10% goal.

Renewable Energy Corporation ASA (REC) has announced plans to invest NOK 13 billion, approximately $2.5 billion in a new manufacturing complex to be built in Singapore that will include an initial capacity of 740MW of multicrystalline solar wafers, 550MW of solar cells and 590MW of solar modules starting in the first quarter of 2010. Full capacity is expected to be reached before 2012, and is being treated as ‘Phase 1’ of several planned developments, with the decision for the next expansion phase said to be made in 2009, according to REC.

Conergy SolarModule GmbH & Co. KG has named Mathias Kamolz as Managing Director of its Frankfurt (Oder) production site. Effective immediately, the new role managing the Oder plant will see Mr. Kamolz apply his semiconductor-related experience to building the business of the new solar factory.

Intel Corporation has spun off solar cell technology developed in-house under its New Business Initiatives group that is designed to stimulate new businesses from Intel employees. The start-up is called SpectraWatt, with the lead investor being Intel Capital. Other investors in the $50 million round include Goldman Sachs, PCG Clean Energy and Technology Fund (“CETF”) and German module manufacturer Solon AG, presumably an expected customer of SpectraWatt. How much Intel or the other partners actually invested was not made clear.

LDK Solar has signed a five-year solar wafer supply agreement with China-based Jiangxi Solar PV Corporation (JSPV), a venture created by Solar PV Corp. The agreement will see LDK provide approximately 70MW of multicrystalline solar wafers to JSPV from 2009 to 2013, with JSPV paying an upfront advance payment of a portion of the overall agreement cost to LDK Solar.

Brian Jacolick (pictured), former Vice President of sales for SunEdison, has been promoted to General Manager for the North America region and in this role will oversee operations for the U.S., Canada and the Caribbean. Mr. Jacolick will be based in Beltsville, Maryland, and will report directly to CEO Tom Rainwater.

Continuing its strategy to leverage semiconductor and related technologies to the photovoltaics industry, IBM has said that IBM Research is targeting 15 percent plus conversion efficiencies for CIGS solar cell modules. Current CIGS thin-film cells achieve efficiencies in the range of 8 to 12 percent.

Polysilicon and multicrystalline wafer manufacturing start-up, Prime Solar, headquartered in Perth, Australia has selected CDI Corp to undertake detailed engineering design work for the construction of a polysilicon manufacturing facility near Leipzig, Germany. The contract was signed with CDI Engineering Solutions, a division of CDI Corp.

Dr. Stephen R. Forrest (pictured) has been added to the Applied Materials Board of Directors and also to the Strategic Committee of the Board. An expert in the fields of optoelectronics and organic compounds, Dr. Forrest is a well-known lecturer, fellow of IEEE and recipient of many awards for his inventions and innovations.