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Taichung, Taiwan (SPX) Mar 05, 2008 Solar energy is moving into a new phase in Taiwan with the start-up of the country's first, large-scale thin film solar cell manufacturing plant. BOC Lien Hwa, Taiwan's leading electronic gases supplier, has been selected to supply NexPower in Taichung, central Taiwan, with a wide range of high purity gases used in the manufacturing process. BOCLH is a joint venture between The Linde Group, a leading global gases and engineering group, and Taiwan's Lien Hwa Corporation, offering gases, gas supply systems and services for numerous applications in semiconductor, solar cell, and TFT-LCD production. The NexPower plant is expected to begin operations by the second quarter of 2008. It will use a new thin-film technology that enables the production of large-scale solar panels that have an area more than five times of those currently produced. This larger area helps produce more power, making the power generation costs more competitive with that of conventional grid-supplied electricity. Although solar power is currently a small percentage of today's energy mix, analysts predict it will grow at an annual rate of between 20 and 25 percent. "BOCLH is excited to be a part of this new and developing technology which we believe will have an expanding role in Taiwan's power supply infrastructure in the coming years," said Alex Tong, president, BOCLH. "Our partnership with NexPower reinforces Linde's mission to develop and apply advanced gas technologies that help manufacturers move towards lower cost energy." Under a long-term agreement, BOCLH will provide NexPower with turnkey installation of the special gases supply systems and ongoing delivery of the gases essential to making thin film solar cells. These gases include large volumes of silane and hydrogen gas, used to deposit silicon light absorber layers on large sheets of glass, and cleaning gases used to remove silicon deposits from the process chambers. NexPower was formed in 2005 by the UMC Group, one of the world's leading semiconductor foundry companies, to meet the growing demand for clean energy sources. Community Email This Article Comment On This Article Related Links All About Solar Energy at SolarDaily.com
The Solar Effect Boosts The European Inverters Market
London, UK (SPX) Mar 05, 2008The renewable energy boom across Europe has opened up an unprecedented market for solar energy-based inverters. An indispensable component of photovoltaic (PV) power systems, inverters typically convert direct current (DC) generated via PV modules from sunlight to alternating current (AC) for grid-connected systems. They are often used on boats, caravans and in remote areas where a mains supply is required and typical applications include: televisions, computers, electrical appliances, power tools. |
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