Manufacturing

Increased orders from PV manufacturers in Asia are responsible for Despatch Industries posting third quarter revenue in excess of US$75 million. Despatch said it had expanded production capacity to meet demand, particularly for thermal furnaces. Lead times have subsequently declined for its range of products, the company said.

New supply agreements with multiple customers have pushed JA Solar’s 2011 delivery commitments passed 1.2GW. The cell and module manufacturer said it had secured an additional 600MW of new product orders, all with delivery dates in 2011 and had received prepayments associated with these customer orders.

Meyer Burger has concluded a CHF 70 million wire saw and wafer inspection systems contract with an unnamed customer in Asia. The contract will enable the customer to expand its production facility during next year.

Pfeiffer Vacuum Technology has revealed its intention to acquire Alcatel-Lucent's Adixen vacuum technology unit, headquartered in Annecy, France. Negotiations on the purchase of the companies, patents and licenses belonging to this unit have been largely finalized with Pfeiffer Vacuum's supervisory board consenting to the acquisition on November 3.

The Chinese National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) has approved a pre-feasibility study for the construction of the first phase of First Solar's 30MW thin-film solar power plant located in Ordos City, Inner Mongolia. This phase marks the beginning of 2GW which are to be implemented in the area through 2019.

An ambitious plan, which hasn’t been without implementation issues and which has stretched the financial structure of REC Group, is finally bearing fruit according to key executives of the company. At a lengthy investor and analyst seminar being held in Singapore, coinciding with the grand opening of the company's €1.3 billion plus integrated module production facility, enigmatic CEO Ole Enger claimed REC was on track to deliver a companywide all inclusive cost of €0.97/watt by the fourth quarter 2011. Excluding equipment and building depreciation at the new plant, the cash cost target for next year would be €0.74/watt.

Tempress Systems, a solar subsidiary of Amtech Systems, has obtained US$33 million in new solar orders from numerous Asian customers. The customers, both new and existing for the company, ordered Tempress’s diffusion processing systems this past October.

Oerlikon Solar's €16.7 million research project "Pepper" will receive a €9.4 million funding grant under the Framework Programme for Research of the European Union, coordinated by the DG Energy of the European Commission. The project, which began on September 1, is aimed at demonstrating high performance processes and equipment for thin-film silicon photovoltaics modules produced with lower costs, reduced material use, and an improved environmental-friendly production process.

German machine supplier 4JET has reported a high order intake in its thin-film photovoltaics business. The company will supply laser equipment, edge deletion systems, glass drilling modules, and busbar stripping equipment to 10 different production lines for CIGS and CdTe manufacturing through mid-2011.

Innotech Solar (ITS) has now begun constructing its new solar cell production site located in the Eastern German city of Halle, laying the first foundation stone on October 27. The facility is expected to initially create 80 new jobs in the region, with plans to increase the number of employees as the site progresses. Innotech Solar was assisted in the investment process by Germany Trade & Invest and the Investment and Marketing Corporation (IMG) Saxony-Anhalt.