Sunfilm Opens New Solar Frontiers.MUNICH, Germany -- Good Energies and NorSun have established Sunfilm AG to manufacture the world's first 5.7m2 tandem thin film photovoltaic modules on glass substrates on a production line supplied by Applied Materials Applied Materials, Inc. NASDAQ: AMAT (HKSE: 4336 ) is the global leader in nanomanufacturing technology solutions with a broad portfolio of innovative equipment, service and software products for the fabrication of semiconductor chips, flat panel solar displays, solar , Inc. "Sunfilm opens new frontiers; it goes beyond what today's industry is projecting - in size and in performance - and could change the way solar energy solar energy, any form of energy radiated by the sun, including light, radio waves, and X rays, although the term usually refers to the visible light of the sun. is viewed. We believe that solar energy is of paramount importance for our energy future. However, we need to stay focused on bringing the cost down. This venture aims at grid parity. Applied Materials' technological leadership is the key element for us in this project," says Dr. Sven Hansen Sir Sven Wohlford Hansen, 1st Baronet MBE (1 April 1876–9 October 1958) was a Welsh shipowner and shipbuilder. Hansen was born in South Wales, the son of Carl Frederick Hansen, a shipowner of Scandinavian extraction. , Good Energies' Chief Investment Officer. Applied's production line will feature new tandem cell technology--an innovative dual-junction approach that combines an amorphous silicon Silicon that does not have a crystalline structure and which is not conductive. Contrast with polysilicon. top film to absorb short wavelengths of light with a microcrystalline microcrystalline /mi·cro·crys·tal·line/ (-kris´tah-lin) made up of minute crystals. microcrystalline made up of minute crystals. silicon bottom layer to absorb longer wavelengths. These tandem cells are expected to deliver significantly higher energy conversion efficiencies at a cost per Watt that is comparable to that of single junction technologies. By coupling tandem technology with ultra-large 5.7m2 substrates, Sunfilm expects to substantially reduce the cost of solar panel manufacturing. "With this initiative we introduce second generation solar energy technology," said Dr. Alf Bjorseth, founder and board member of NorSun. "Solar panels based on this tandem cell technology will provide clients with electricity at a very competitive price and have countless areas of application. This new technology will strongly support the continued growth of the solar energy market." "We are excited to work with Sunfilm, Good Energies and NorSun, whose people are among the most influential and respected leaders in the solar business," said Dr. Mark Pinto, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Applied's New Business and New Products Group. "The Good Energies and NorSun teams have proven that they can shape the industry - and we look forward to working with them to deliver leading-edge, cost-efficient PV module technology." Sunfilm AG is currently designing the building and facilities for its first PV line and will start construction work in Q2/2007 on its local site. This project will be supported with grants from the State of Saxony Saxony (săk`sənē), Ger. Sachsen, Fr. Saxe, state (1994 pop. 4,901,000), 7,078 sq mi (18,337 sq km), E central Germany. Dresden is the capital. and is expected to employ about 180 people when the line is fully operational in 2008/2009. Sunfilm's contract with Applied is for a fully-integrated equipment line for an ultra-large panel tandem module factory with a nominal rated capacity of 60 megawatts per year. This is approximately three times the capacity of conventional thin film solar facilities. "Our thin film production line will provide Sunfilm with the first combination of higher-efficiency tandem technology and the compelling cost-advantage of ultra-large scale panels. We've seen similar cost benefits in the flat panel display A thin display screen for computer and TV usage. The first flat panels appeared on laptop computers in the mid-1980s, and the LCD technology became the standard. Stand-alone LCD screens became available for desktop computers in the mid-1990s and exceeded sales of CRTs for the first time industry as our customers have transitioned to larger-area substrates," added Dr. Pinto. Sunfilm Sunfilm AG is a newly established operating company operating company A business that engages in transactions with outsiders. located in Grossrohrsdorf Saxony/Germany. www.sunfilmsolar.com. Good Energies Good Energies is a member of the COFRA group and one of the largest investors in the renewable energy industry. Its globally invested portfolio has a market capitalisation of over USD USD In currencies, this is the abbreviation for the U.S. Dollar. Notes: The currency market, also known as the Foreign Exchange market, is the largest financial market in the world, with a daily average volume of over US $1 trillion. 3 billion. Good Energies contributes to the challenge of sustainable energy transition through its investments in leading solar photovoltaic The generation of voltage by a material that is exposed to light in the visible and invisible ranges. See photoelectric and photovoltaic cell. companies, wind energy developers and other renewable energy technologies. Its policy aims to provide long-term strategic investments in partnership with companies developing the technologies of the future. www.goodenergies.com. NorSun NorSun AS was established in December 2005 by Scatec AS, that serves as the point of origin for new business ideas within renewable energy and advanced materials. Scatec AS is still the largest owner in NorSun. The purpose of NorSun is to produce the lowest cost solar power components for the international solar energy market. www.norsuncorp.no Applied Materials Applied Materials, Inc. (AMAT AMAT Applied Materials (stock symbol) AMAT Average Memory Access Time AMAT Automatic Message Accounting Transmitter AMAT Anti-Materiel (bomb or mine) AMAT Ageing Management Assessment Team ) is the global leader in Nanomanufacturing Technology[TM] solutions with a broad portfolio of innovative equipment, service and software products for the fabrication fabrication (fab´rikā´sh  n),n the construction or making of a restoration. of semiconductor chips, flat panels, solar photovoltaic cells, flexible electronics and energy efficient glass. www.appliedmaterials.com |
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