News Article
Centrotherm Smiling With 14.4 % of Sunshine PV
The initial investment of a single-digit amount in millions of euros in the CIGS solar cell manufacturer is part of a capital increase. The stake is to be expanded to a total interest of around 25 % early next year.
Centrotherm photovoltaics has purchased 14.4 % of the share capital of Taiwanese CIGS thin film solar module manufacturer Sunshine PV.
Wholly-owned centrotherm photovoltaics subsidiary Photovoltaics Asia Invest Pte. Ltd., Singapore, has invested a single-digit amount in millions of euros in Sunshine as part of a capital increase. The stake is to be expanded to a total interest of around 25 % early next year.
With the share purchase, centrotherm photovoltaics has taken an important strategic step to introduce new second-generation selenium plants at Sunshine, thereby advancing centrotherm photovoltaics' CIGS thin film technology. The investment enables a close cooperation with Sunshine that allows manufacturing systems to be operated and further optimized under real mass production conditions.
"We are pleased to further develop this second thin-film generation jointly with Sunshine. CIGS thin-film technology offers enormous potential. With this step, we are backing this future market in a targeted manner”, comments Frank Stubhan CEO of centrotherm photovoltaics AG's Thin Film Module division. "We are currently experiencing major interest for CIGS technology from potential new customers."
Together with its Taiwanese customer, the South German company is working on boosting efficiency and throughput at the pilot plant. Sunshine is currently starting to sell the first modules from its Taiwanese production base.
Centrotherm photovoltaics AG, which is based at Blaubeuren, is a leading technology and equipment provider for the photovoltaics sector. The company equips well-known solar companies and new sector entrants with turnkey production lines and single equipment to manufacture silicon, crystalline solar cells and thin film modules.
As a consequence, the Group possesses a broad and well-founded technological basis as well as key equipment at practically all steps of the photovoltaics value chain. centrotherm photovoltaics guarantees its customers important performance parameters such as production capacity, efficiencies, and completion deadlines. The Group employs around 1,400 staff, and operates globally in Europe, Asia and the USA. centrotherm photovoltaics achieved revenue in the 2009 financial year of €509.1 million, EBIT of €37.2 million, and is listed in the TecDax of the Frankfurt Securities Exchange.
