Silex Systems to buy, recommission shuttered BP Solar facility in Sydney

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email

Silex Systems has conditionally acquired the manufacturing assets and equipment of the Sydney Olympic Park (SOP) solar photovoltaic production facility from BP Solar, which operated the Australian fab until March. Silex has also signed a conditional lease for the building which houses the SOP plant, so once the transactions are completed, the manufacturing facility–including infrastructure and services–will be secured relatively intact, according to the company. Both transactions are expected to be completed before the end of June.

Subject to the signoff of the deals, Silex anticipates that new manufacturing operations will involve a progressive roll-out of advanced technology and innovations, potentially including novel band-gap engineered materials being developed by its Silicon Valley subsidiary, Translucent.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Try Premium for just $1

  • Full premium access for the first month at only $1
  • Converts to an annual rate after 30 days unless cancelled
  • Cancel anytime during the trial period

Premium Benefits

  • Expert industry analysis and interviews
  • Digital access to PV Tech Power journal
  • Exclusive event discounts

Or get the full Premium subscription right away

Or continue reading this article for free

“This is a unique opportunity for Silex to kick-start its commercial solar operations,” said
Michael Goldsworthy, Silex’s CEO. “More importantly, it opens the door for Silex to begin implementing some potentially exciting technical innovations aimed at higher-efficiency solar cells. Whilst the SOP plant provides a solid platform for the production of high-quality silicon solar cells, our aim is to ultimately become a leader in the solar industry through technology innovation.”

The SOP facility is said to be the largest solar manufacturing plant in the Southern Hemisphere, with annual production of more than 50 MW of crystalline-silicon solar cells and 10 MW of modules under previous operations. Silex says that the plant’s future capacity could potentially be expanded to 200 MW, and possibly more with improvements in cell efficiencies.

Initially, the fab will operate at a reduced capacity of 10-15 MW in 2010, ramping up to full capacity sometime between 2012 and 2015, depending on market demand, according to Silex. The time to market with product from the SOP plant, regardless of cell technology, is dictated by the product qualification process, which is expected to take approximately six months to complete.

During this period–which is planned to begin in July following finalization of the aforementioned transactions–Silex Solar says it will undertake maintenance and recommissioning activities, and produce the product samples needed for qualification testing later in the year.

The existing manufacturing equipment and facility are in good condition, although the company says it has budgeted up to AUS $500,000 in costs associated with the recommissioning effort over
the rest of this year. A team of about 20 engineers and technicians is being assembled to work on the efforts. If all goes to plan (noting that delays are possible), Silex hopes to generate its first sales in the first quarter of 2010.

The total capital investment required to implement the acquisition, recommissioning, and other aspects of the deal are estimated at AUS$7 million, according to Silex. The New South Wales government actively supported the acquisition as well.

Read Next

October 10, 2025
US solar recycling firm OnePlanet has achieved the R2v3 certification from electronics sustainability non-profit SERI, which represents the “highest standards of traceability”.
October 10, 2025
NTPC Renewable Energy Limited has signed an MoU with the Government of Gujarat to develop 15GW renewable energy projects in Gujarat.
October 10, 2025
Australia's renewable energy sector recorded its slowest month of the year for additions in September, with 5.8GW of new projects added to development pipelines, according to data from Rystad Energy.
October 9, 2025
The Australian government has announced the results of the fourth Capacity Investment Scheme (CIS) tender, with 6.6GW of renewables awarded long-term contracts.
October 9, 2025
Solar PV is the world’s cheapest technology to generate electricity, according to a study from the University of Surrey, in the UK.
October 9, 2025
Entergy Arkansas has announced plans to build a 600MW solar-plus-storage project to support a new data centre to be built by Google.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
October 21, 2025
New York, USA
Solar Media Events
November 25, 2025
Warsaw, Poland
Solar Media Events
December 2, 2025
Málaga, Spain
Solar Media Events
February 3, 2026
London, UK