Suntech and Wacker Schott Sign 220MW Silicon Wafer Supply Agreement
San Francisco, CA and Wuxi, China, June 24, 2008
Source: Suntech Power Holdings Inc, press release /PRNewswire
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/06-24-2008/0004837584
Suntech Power Holdings Co., Ltd. (NYSE: STP), one of the world’s leading manufacturers of photovoltaic (PV) cells and modules, and WACKER SCHOTT Solar GmbH (“WACKER SCHOTT”), a joint venture of Wacker Chemie AG and SCHOTT Solar GmbH, today announced they have signed a long term silicon wafer supply agreement. Under the terms of the supply agreement, WACKER SCHOTT will supply Suntech specified annual volumes of silicon wafers with a total volume of approximately 220MW over the course of the contract.
“With the impressive reputations of Wacker Chemie AG and SCHOTT AG, we have no doubt that WACKER SCHOTT will become a reliable source of high quality silicon wafers for Suntech. We admire their efforts to rapidly develop commercial scale production of silicon wafers and look forward to being a long term customer,” commented Dr. Zhengrong Shi, Suntech’s Chairman and CEO.
“WACKER SCHOTT Solar is proud to have Suntech Power Holdings, one of the top cell and module manufacturers, on its customer list,” commented Axel Schmidt, Managing Director of WACKER SCHOTT Solar. “We are continuously growing our production capacities. By doing so, we strongly benefit from the expertise of our joint-venture partners and from a secure supply of high quality polysilicon provided by WACKER,” said Dr. Patrick Markschlager, Managing Director of WACKER SCHOTT Solar. “Our focus
is on supplying high quality solar wafers for first class PV systems with high cell efficiencies.”
Suntech partners with many first tier, international manufacturers across the entire solar value chain in order to build the highest quality modules and ensure continual product and technology evolution. Many of Suntech’s key equipment and materials originate in Europe including PV cell and module manufacturing equipment, module backsheets, adhesives, and silicon wafers.
About Suntech
Suntech Power Holdings Co., Ltd. is a world leading solar energy company as measured by both production output and capacity of solar cells and modules. Suntech is passionate about improving the environment we live in and dedicated to developing advanced solar solutions that enable sustainable development. Suntech designs, develops, manufactures, and markets a variety of high quality, cost effective and environmentally friendly solar products for electric power applications in the residential, commercial, industrial, and public utility sectors. Suntech offers one of the broadest ranges of building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) products under the MSK Solar Design Line(TM). Suntech has sales offices worldwide
and is a market share leader in key global solar markets. For more information, please visit http://www.suntech-power.com .
About WACKER SCHOTT Solar
WACKER SCHOTT Solar GmbH is a joint venture of Wacker Chemie AG and SCHOTT Solar GmbH. The company manufactures hyperpure polycrystalline silicon wafers, the starting material for solar cells. Over the coming years, WACKER SCHOTT Solar plans to invest a total of EUR370 million at its sites in Jena (Thuringia) and Alzenau (Bavaria), creating at least 700 new jobs. Total solar-wafer production capacity is set to expand in stages, reaching about one gigawatt per year by 2012. This will make the joint
venture one of the world’s largest solar-wafer manufacturers.