AQT Solar's CIGS Manufacturing Facility Goes Online (Calif.)

[jpak]

http://www.solarbuzz.com/News/NewsNAMA231.htm

AQT Solar, a developer of low-cost CIGS (copper-indium-gallium-diselenide) thin-film solar cells has opened its new fully-operational facility in Sunnyvale, California. The facility has already begun production to fill current customer orders of 20 MW, with substantial purchase orders in the pipeline.

AQT also released the name of its first customer installation, Sol Pacifico, a large property development, which has ordered 2 MW of energy to power its gated community in Baja Mexico, on the Pacific coast.

AQT’s new facility, fueled by a recent $10 million round of funding, currently houses a 15 MW manufacturing line, and can easily scale up to 60 MW of production capacity. The manufacturing line’s modular design allowed for quick on-site deployment and is a result of the company’s partnership with Intevac, a leader in high-productivity manufacturing equipment. The preparation, build-out, line implementation and qualification, and production initiation was completed for the Sunnyvale location in less than eight weeks. The small footprint of each highly-automated machine provides an efficient use of space within the 20,000 square foot facility. As a result, AQT can produce up to 60 MW in an area many times smaller than its nearest competitors.

“Starting commercial production so early in our company’s lifecycle is a confirmation of our business model, the leverage we receive from world class partners like Intevac and our breakthrough CIGS production process,” said Michael Bartholomeusz, CEO of AQT. “We have set aggressive production goals for the remainder of 2010 and beyond and are excited to kick it off in California, the heart of the solar industry.”

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