Abengoa Solar and Concentrix Solar team up to create Concentrix Iberia
The new company will commercialize FLATCON® concentration technology-based solar power plants.
Sevilla, April 3, 2008
Source: Abengoa Solar press release
http://www.abengoasolar.es/sites/solar/en/noticia9.jsp
Abengoa Solar and Concentrix Solar GmbH have decided to team up, sharing their expertise and leadership, with the creation of Concentrix Iberia. The company has emerged with the aim of commercializing solar power plants based on FLATCON® concentration technology; that is, solar modules with the highest efficiencies on the market. Concentrix Solar GmbH, a leader in photovoltaic concentration (CPV), was founded in February, 2005 to commercialize the technology for solar energy systems developed by the Fraunhofer Institute of Solar Energy Systems (ISE), in Germany.
Concentrix Solar has a concentration module production pilot factory with an annual power output capacity of one megawatt, and another 25 megawatts factory is scheduled for start up by mid-2008. This completely automated facility will improve economies of scale for this innovative technology, obtaining the best prices and the highest quality at the same time.
Hansjörg Lerchenmülleer, CEO of Concentrix Solar GmbH, expressed his satisfaction with the new joint venture, emphasizing “Abengoa Solar’s vast experience in solar plant construction and operation, making it the perfect partner for development in the Spanish market.” In turn, Santiago Seage, Abengoa Solar’s CEO, stated, “We have high expectations for this joint venture. Concentrix Solar has obtained extraordinary technical results, among which is the highest efficiency on the market, exceeding 23 percent. We are absolutely convinced by the potential of their technology.”
Concentrix technology
Concentrix technology permits the concentration of sunlight, with a factor of 500 times, onto extremely efficient cells which until now were used only for space satellites. The “Fresnel lenses” concentrate direct radiation from a four by four-centimeter square onto a focal point of 2.3 millimeters in diameter. With a concentration ratio of around 500, the active surface can be reduced to a fraction of that of conventional modules.
Moreover, the technology utilizes the best solar cells available, which, thanks to their low term coefficient, increase concentration efficiency. Considerable savings in material are therefore achieved, delivering high efficiency at the same time.
These cells, referred to as III-V (the semiconductor materials utilized come from these groups of the periodic table), turn concentrated sunlight into electrical power. They are composed of different semiconductor materials, stacked on top of each other, which selectively absorb a portion of the solar spectrum. FLATCON® modules have surpassed 26 percent efficiency under real operating conditions. The new triple solar cells, with 35 percent efficiency, are expected to bring about significant module improvement.
Abengoa Solar expands its business in advanced technologies
Abengoa Solar, a subsidiary of Abengoa, develops and applies solar energy technologies to ensure sustainability. In concentrating solar power technology, Abengoa Solar was the world’s first company to build a tower technology plant for commercial use, the eleven-megawatt PS10. At present, construction is underway on PS20, a 20 megawatts second generation tower technology plant.
In Spain, in addition to PS10 and PS20, two 50 megawatts plants are under construction. And two integrated solar combined cycle plants are being built in Algeria and Morocco.
In February of 2008, Abengoa Solar signed a contract with Arizona Public Service (APS) to build the largest solar plant in the world, with a power output capacity of 280 megawatts.
In terms of photovoltaic technology, Abengoa Solar built Seville PV, the world’s largest low-concentration plant. From now on, Abengoa Solar’s business activities will also include high concentration photovoltaic plants based on FLATCON® high concentration modules.
A company of renowned prestige
Concentrix Solar received the Innovation Award of the Germany Economy, in the category of “Start-Up Companies”, distinguishing itself as the company with the most promising innovation. This prize, which has been awarded annually for twenty eight consecutive years, is promoted by the Rhein-Main e.V. business club and the business weekly Wirtschafts Woche, and receives sponsorship from the German Federal Ministry of Economy and Technology.
The Institute of Concentration Photovoltaics Systems (ISFOC) chose Concentrix Solar for construction of a 200 kilowatts plant in Puertollano (Ciudad Real), the largest high-concentration photovoltaic solar power plant to date, as well as a 300 kilowatts installation in Cuenca.