Soitec has commenced shipping of its Concentrix concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) systems to Focusic New Energy Holding in China. The shipment forms part of an initial order.
Soitec generates and manufactures innovative semiconductor materials for energy and electronics industries, while Focusic is a China-based provider of low-cost, clean, solar energy.
The Concentrix CPV systems order is Soitec’s first solar-energy systems order that it has received from the People’s Republic of China.
The managing director of Focusic, Ma Wenxing, stated that the efficiency of Soitec’s Concentrix technology and the experience derived from research and development of the technology had impressed Focusic. The senior vice president for customer group at the solar energy business unit of Soitec, Hansjörg Lerchenmüller, said that the Chinese renewable-energy market was a thrilling prospect for the company’s CPV technology.
Equipment from Soitec are to be utilized for building a 3 MW CPV solar power plant in the city of Hami, which is situated in the Xinjiang province and on the Taklamakan desert edge.
Soitec’s CPV technology does not cause any negative impact by shading and thus, does not affect plant life. The land does not have to be graded, thus making the CPV technology suitable for ecologically sensitive desert areas. Systems using Concentrix technology do not require water for cooling. CPV technology has 30% power-generating module efficiency and has low maintenance and installation costs. In areas having high direct normal irradiance (DNI) CPV technology is a comparatively cost-effective solution for the generation of high-volume power. The technology has immense potential in China as the country has around 500,000 sq. mi of area having high DNI ratings.
Source: http://www.soitec.com/