Germany based Q-Cells AG (QCE.F), the world’s second-largest solar cell manufacturer, announced its entry into thin-film solar through an partnership with Sweden’s Solibro AB.
Q-Cells will hold a 67.5% share in the newly formed Solibro GmbH, which will commercialize the copper indium gallium di-selenide (CIGS) thin-film technology developed by Solibro AB.
The first factory will be built in Thalheim, Germany with an annual production capacity of 25 to 30 MWp.
Q-Cells AG will initially pay Solibro AB ¬4 million for its 67.5% share and ¬20 million against the achievement of technical milestones, and has committed ¬60 million for the first factory.
Solibro AB is a spin-off from the renowned CIGS research group at the University of Uppsala’s Angstrom Solar Center. The technology has been developed with the support from the Swedish Energy Agency. Shareholders of Solibro AB are the Swedish pension fund Sjatte AP-Fonden (45%), the Norwegian investment firm Energy Future Invest (30%), the four founders of the company (12.5%), Vattenfall (6%), ABB (3%), Uppsala University (1.5%) and Innovationsbron i Uppsala AB (1.5%).
Ownership of the technology developed by Solibro AB, for which three patent applications have been filed, and all related assets will be transferred to Solibro GmbH. The current pilot line in Uppsala will be transformed to a manufacturing development center, operated as a wholly owned subsidiary of Solibro GmbH. The center will provide technical support to production and drive further CIGS developments of strategic importance.
Solibro layers CIGS on industrial-size glass substrates, achieving independently confirmed efficiencies exceeding 11.5%. A related technology, has realized efficiencies of up to 16.6% (minimodules) and 18.5% (solar cells) under laboratory conditions.
CIGS technology has several benefits: it does not require any silicon and, compared with other thin-film technologies, it has the potential of very high module efficiencies, exceeding 12% in industrial production. The aesthetic appearance of the black modules also makes them well suited for integration into the facades and roofs of buildings.
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