BP Solar has started construction of a 300MW solar cell plant in TresCantos, Madrid, Spain. Phase 1 of the new plant will have an annualcell capacity of 55MW with a total planned capacity of 300MW. The firstline expected to be fully operational in 3Q07.
As part of its attempt to become a shining light in the fast emerging solar energy manufacturing market, Applied Materials wants to lead by example and so has announced that it will be installing over 1.9 megawatts of solar power generation capability at its research campus in Sunnyvale, California.
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) scientists have produced anoptical coating with almost the same refractive index as air (NaturePhotonics, March 2007). This means that its light reflection propertiesare practically zero. RPI claims a world record by decreasing thereflectivity compared to conventional anti-reflection coatings by anorder of magnitude.
Hoku Materials, a division of Hoku Scientific, plans to build a $220million polysilicon production plant in Pocatello, Idaho. CH2M HILLLockwood Greene will build the facility, according to Hoku, and willcreate 200 jobs.
Applied Materials, Inc., via its venture capital fund, Applied Ventures, LLC has invested $3.0 million US dollars in Solaicx, a privately owned manufacturer of single-crystal silicon wafers specifically designed for the solar photovoltaic (PV) industry.
