News Article
Amonix III-V solar plant receives $17.9 million in funding
The manufacturing facility for gallium arsenide based multi-junction photovoltaic systems is being financed by a combination of $5 million in Recovery Act tax credits and $12 million in private funding.
U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Steven Chu visited the new Amonix production facility last week to see first-hand how the Obama Administration’s renewable energy policies are turning into economic activity and energy independence.
Chu toured the North Las Vegas facility where Amonix produces concentrated photovoltaic CPV solar power systems for utility-scale power plants, such as the 2 MW power plant in Tucson, Arizona, that showcases one of the world’s most efficient solar technologies. After the tour, Chu led a round table discussion with solar industry business leaders at the Amonix facility.
Chu was a co-winner of the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1997 and former director of the DOE's Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, where he led the lab in pursuit of alternative and renewable energy technologies.
“Secretary Chu has a longstanding interest in renewable energy sources. It’s an honour to have him visit Amonix to take a closer look at our state-of-the-art manufacturing facility,” said Amonix CEO Brian Robertson. “His visit emphasises the reality that utility-scale solar energy is an economically viable reality.”
Renewable energy development is a cornerstone of President Barack Obama’s long-term economic strategy. The DOE also recently announced the SunShot Initiative in an effort to cut the cost of solar energy by 75 % by 2020. The 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act included $70 billion in renewable energy and energy efficiency measures.
The Amonix facility in North Las Vegas was financed with a $5.9 million investment tax credit from the Recovery Act awarded in 2010 and $12 million in private capital. The facility will bring $560 million of overall economic impact, including more than 300 private-sector clean energy jobs, to Southern Nevada in the next five years, according to the Nevada Development Authority.
