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7 Efficiency is the Key for Central Taiwan Science Park
10 Southern Taiwan Science Park – Shortcut to the Top of the World
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12 First Taiwan PV Industry Cluster Shines in Letzer
Frank Ma, CEO of PIDA
Editorial Team:
Industry News
Angel Chiou, Dan Guo,
Murphy Lin, Stephy Chen, 15 Current Taiwan PV Industry Outlook
Karen Ho, Deaphne Kuo,
Terry Tu, Jason Lu 17 PV Design Application Surges in Taiwan
22 Biggest Research Drive for Cheaper Solar Energy
Art Designer:
Chiou-Ling Liu 24 PV Industry Recruits New Blood in Recession
Director of Market &
Bussiness Division:
Ryan Chung
Company Profiles
Sales Contact: 27 DelSolar Plans Out to Get Ahead
Ginger Chen, Pamela Hsiao,
Cathy Zhang, Ben Tsai,
Henry Nieh
31 Green Energy Technology Aims to Top the Best
Advertising:
Christine Chen
ad@mail.pida.org.tw
Exhibition Watch
Subscriptions: 35 Photonics Festival in Taiwan Re-Ignites the Momentum of the Industry
Simon Huang
simon@mail.pida.org.tw
36 Solar Taiwan 2009 to Bring New Visions to the Industry
Editorial Submissions:
Angel Chiou
(angelchiou@mail.pida.org.tw)
Product News
40 2009 Outsatanding Photonics Product Award Winners
44 SYSNIX, Chang-Yu Technology, TCO, Orient Service
Corporation, Emit Technology, Solteam Opto,
Well Expediting Ent., EISO Enterprise
Special Topic
Hsinchu Science
Park—Technology
Develops Economy
Home to over 400 companies including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing
Company, United Microelectronics Corporation, and AU Optronics, Hsinchu
Science Park (HSP) is the first science park in Taiwan, playing an important
role to transform Taiwan’s original labor-intensive process industries into
high-tech industries, winning itself the name of “Taiwan’s Silicon Valley.” The
following are selected questions from an exclusive interview with the Director-
General Mr. Randy T. M. Yen.
By Angel Chiou
PV
PV industry has become a hot issue regarding alternative energy and
reduction of carbon dioxide. PV industries in HSP would keep exploiting
upstream materials for the development of crystalline silicon and amorphous
silicon solar cell panels.
A Mr. Yen: First of all, HSP has the most abundant research resource
by being close to Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI), a national research organization that serves
to prop up the technological competitiveness of Taiwan, National Tsing Hua University and National Chiao
Tung University, both of which are known for their strength in science and engineering. HSP can fully utilize
the R&D capability from these institutes, and integrate resources from government, industry, academia, and
research institutes, serving as a platform for technology transition or mechanization of research outcome.
Further, industry clusters in HSP has been developed for about 30 years and is quite mature. The complete
industrial chain not only can draw more resources and funds from the government, but also can attract more
companies of the same industry to enter HSP for the convenience of cooperation in technology and business.
In addition, HSP has won good
Table 1 In addition to the original science park in Hsinchu, HSP system comprises 5 other sections.
reputation for its insistence on high
Sections Industry Current development / Goal quality. To be qualified to enter HSP
Integrated Circuits is pretty much like a credit for the
Computers and ►Industrial cluster has been fully developed.
peripherals ►Equipped with talents, funds, technology and market company’s quality.
Hsinchu
Telecommunications supply chain.
Park
Optoelectronics ►Together with satellite science parks to form a high-tech
Precision machinery industrial cluster.
Biotechnology Hsinchu Science Park has
Jhunan Optoelectronics Expected to have 55 high-tech companies by 2011 with been playing a critical role
Park Biotechnology annual revenue about 67 billion, offering 18 thousand jobs.
for Taiwan’s technological
►To construct Longtan Park as a PV industrial cluster.
Longtan Optoelectronics
►Expected to recruit 10 PV companies by 2011 with annual and industrial development.
Park Photovoltaic
revenue about 75 billion, offering over 8 thousand jobs.
When talking about the
►Plan to recruit 100 high-tech companies of low energy prospect of HSP, Mr. Yen
Technology
consumption/ low pollution.
Tongluo Environmental
►Expected to reach annual revenue about 300 billion indicated with resolution that
Park protection
after the park completed which would create around 20
Humanity
thousand jobs. they will continue to cultivate
►Park includes National Clinical and Medical Center, talent and help companies
Biomedical Research Center, Medical Equipment
Hsinchu
Research and Trial Center. to grow by encouraging
►To support clinical researches and medical services to
Biomedical Biomedical them to research and invent
enhance regional medical quality.
Park
►The biomedical center would integrate interdisciplinary
resource and research and cultivate research talent for through Innovation Product
related fields.
Aw a r d , a i m i n g t o t a k e
Yilan Park
Knowledge The park is based on knowledge economics to ensure both Taiwan’s hight-tech industry
economics environmental and industrial development.
to another level.
Courtesy : Hsinchu Science Park Administration
By Dan Guo
With diligence and aggressiveness, Yang is confident about the bright future of CTSP. The
establishment of the CTSP has not only contributed greatly to the well-being of people living in central
Taiwan, it is also the comprehensive realization of the government's “Green Silicon Island” policy.
Together with the cooperation of the Hsinchu and Southern Taiwan Science Parks, CTSP is going to be
more important than ever.
By Dan Guo
Fig.1 STSP Director-general Chun Wei Chen Fig.2 Bird’s Eye View of STSP
Courtesy : PIDA Courtesy : STSP
From the interview, we have learned that STSP has encountered some crises in the past, but in
the end they were turned to opportunities. For example, the resonant vibration of the high speed
rail once shattered the investment willingness of companies, but along with the completion of
vibration reduction projects, the problem was solved. Besides, the high speed rail has now become
an important part of the STSP traffic network. “You need to know the task for current stage, then
to respond with right action, and finally to get more done in less time,” said Chen. With this tempo,
STSP is going to embrace another ten years of success.
First Taiwan PV
Industry Cluster Shines
in Letzer
Since the 4 th quarter in 2008 when the economy took a tumble with the
subprime financial crisis, industries all over the world are shrouded in
recession. The photonic industry in Taiwan is included. However, a report from
Industrial Development Bureau Ministry of Economic Affairs shows that the
land rental rate in Letzer Industrial Park, Yilan, still remains high at 85.35%.
How does business in Letzer Industrial Park grow despite recession? PIDA
had an exclusive interview with Mr. Kuo-Hua Lu, Magistrate of Yilan County,
and Mr. Andy Lo, Director –General of Industrial Development and Investment
Promotion Committee. The following are the selected questions from the
interview.
By Angel Chiou
Q PIDA: As we know, Letzer Industrial Park now actively recruit PV players to enter the park
and is ambitious to be the first complete PV industry cluster in Taiwan. Please introduce the PV
industry in Letzer Industrial Park.
A Mr. Lu: Shortage of materials has been an issue for Taiwan’s PV industry and has hindered Taiwan from being
a top solar cell exporting country. It is also the reason why Taiwan does not have a complete industry chain for PV
industry in the past. Lezter Industrial Park, however, had recruited Sanyoun Technology who is the first company in
Taiwan to own the key technology to produce polysilicon. Now, Letzer Industrial park has players in up-, middle- and
down-stream, building up the largest and most complete PV industry cluster in Taiwan.
and form industry clusters managed Downstream Taiwan GPP Inc Wafer package
by different science parks. Companies Enerage Equipment supply
of PV industry, on the contrast, scatter Source : Yilan County Government
over the island and lack a science park to facilitate the progress of
the industry. In this way, it would be difficult to bring resources
and talents into full play, and the technology transfer would only
have limited effect. Therefore, Yilan County Government is
working with PV players to build up Taiwan’s first PV cluster in
Letzer Industrial Park.
In addition, as Yilan is known for its achievement in
environmental protection, how to pursuit industrial progress and
environmental sustainability at the same time becomes the biggest
concern. PV industry’s nature of being sustaining and non-
polluting is coordinated with the expectation of people in Yilan
County.
Q PIDA: What is the future plan for the development of Letzer Industrial Park as PV
industrial cluster?
A Mr. Lu: Besides improving the infrastructures within the park, we are also planning to construct “Center
of PV Research, Demonstration, and Certification.” The main purpose of this center is to strengthen Taiwan’s
research effort as well as to expand the cluster effect through the establishment of the center.
On the other hand, “Center of PV Research, Demonstration, and Certification” can also serve a platform
to integrate resources from industry, government, academia, and research institutes, cultivating talents to
meet the future needs.
At the end of the interview, Mr. Lu mentioned his expectation of Letzer Industrial
Park as an opportunity to bridge the urban-rural gap. By constructing Yilan as the
hometown of solar cells, he aims not only to draw high-tech professionals to work in
Yilan, but to create jobs for local residents as well.
Current Taiwan
PV Industry Outlook
By Angel Chiou
A
s shown in Fig.1 ,Taiwan
PV industry’s revenue Unit: million NTD
of 2008 Q3 is NTD 25,000
31.9 billion, comparing to a sharp 20,000
decline in 2008 Q4 as NTD 15,000
25.8 billion. The drop of upper-/
10,000
middle-/ down-stream revenue
shows the whole PV industry 5,000
Cell Submount
III-V Epi Power Generation
Substrate CPV module Balance of system
Chip System
package
• Vertical integration: Motech will increase its capacity of cutting wafer up to 60% to
reach an annual capacity of wafer at 160MW.
• Vertical integration: Eversol builds PV module plant and invests in PV system.
• E-TON received an order of 50 MW from an international player.
• Unitech stops expanding the solar cell plant in Yilan.
Power
Polysilicon Ingot Wafer Cell Module PV Inverter Generation
System
PV Design Application
Surges in Taiwan
By Angel Chiou
P
V Design Application Forum 2008 was Solar Campus
held on December 19, 2008 in Taipei Solar Campus is a project cooperated by
International Convention Center (TICC), MOEA and Ministry of Education since 2006,
Taiwan. Supervised by Bureau of Energy, Ministry aiming to offer subsidy to 40 schools in Taiwan
of Economic Affair, the forum was hosted by to install PV systems. The installation amounted
Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) and to 135.402 kWp and generated a total amount of
was concurrently held with the ceremony of Jin-Yi 162,482 kWh electricity, reducing 100,739 kg
Award. The purpose of the PV Design Application CO2. Schools that participated in Solar Campus
Forum is to show the government’s efforts in Project include Yanchao Junior High School
promoting PV applications in the past few years (3.675 kWp), Jia Li Elementary School (3.132
and provide a chance for PV system integration kWp), and Tau-Yuan Junior High School (3.5
companies to share their experiences of installing kWp).
and utilizing PV applications.
The display area was divided into seven parts Solar Top (Architecture)
according to different themes, mainly emphasizing Solar Top is a project that combines PV
the integration of buildings and PV applications. installation into architectures to create a new
The seven themes of PV application
include Solar City, Solar Campus, Solar
Top (Architecture), Solar Roof, Solar
31000kW
Community, Emergency, and Agriculture. kW (estimated)
10000
Solar City
7000 5000kW
Solar City Project is now executed A growth rate of 250% per annum
by the local governments of Taipei 5000
County and Hualien County in North
2000 2000kW
Taipei Photonic Recreation Area (240.13 980kW 1300kW
kWp) and Heart of Hwei Lan (202.4
0 2005 2006 2007 2008 2010
kWp) respectively. The purpose of this
2006/1: PVTC established
project is to create a new local landscape
that combines cultural features with
the technology of photovoltaic. The
PV systems installed are expected to
generate 531,072 kWh and reduce CO2 Fig.1 Growth of PV Applications in Taiwan
Courtesy : Photovoltaics Technology Center, ITRI
emissions by 329,265 kg.
Promotion of PV Appli
Energy Commission of MOEA Energy Commission granted MOEA’s Remote Areas Solar City II
established. full subsidy of PV installation to Emergency Project
ITRI took up the research on government units.
PV technology.
Taiwan’s first company of Solar City was put into practice by Conclusion of National Energy Solar Top
Amorphus Silicon Solar the Bureau of Energy according to Conference— to reach the total
Cell— Sinonar Corporation the Planning and Implementation amount of 21 MWp in 2010
of the Challenge 2008 National
Development Plan.
3
Photonics Industry &
Technology Development
Association established.
Bureau of Energy,
Supervised by: Ministry of Economic Organized by: Co-organized by:
Affair
look and trend of BIPV— Building Integrated governments put Solar Community into practice to
Photovoltaic. Liudai Hakka Cultural Park (75 kWp), reinforce the public’s perception of PV system as
National Museum of Taiwan History (195 kWp), and clean energy as well as to enhance communities’
National Museum of Maine Biology & Aquarium standard of living through the installation of PV
(100 kWp) are expected to complete their integration systems.
of PV system by 2009, which would generate
approximately 444,000 kWh per year in the future. Emergency
Started from 2006, remote districts and
Solar Roof islets began to install PV systems through the
Began in 2000, Solar Roof is the earliest project government’s help. This is due to the unsteady
for the government to promote the installation of PV power supply in these areas especially during
system. By the time of Dec. 12th 2008, up to 267 cases the season of typhoons or in situations such as
have been completed. One of the best examples is the earthquakes. The PV installation would provide
PV system installed on the roof of the Office of the electricity for emergency use for the residents in
President (10 kWp), which is completed in 2002 to those remote areas.
show the government’s determination to pave the way
for the success of PV industry. The other examples Agriculture
include Cingjing Farm in Nan-Tou County (10.08 Participants of PV installation in agriculture
kWp) and Nan-Ying Green City in Tainan County include the Hsinchu Branch of Livestock Research
(20.4 kWp). By Dec. 12 2008, the installed PV Institute (7.11 kWp), and Taichung District
systems in Solar Roof have accumulatively produced Agricultural Research and Extension Station (3.15
3510.355 kWp and generate 4,212,402 kWh. kWp). The annual electricity generated in this
project is 64,922 kWh, and the reduction of CO2
Solar Community emission is 40,295 kg.
Together with MOEA, Taiwan’s local According to Dr. Chung-Wen Lan, the general
director of Photovoltaics Technology Center, ITRI,
385 solar power system have been installed in
Taiwan with an accumulated capacity of 5 MWp.
Six million kWh has been generated by Dec.12th,
2008 to provide electricity for approximately 1600
households. A total of 3,720 tons of CO2 has been
reduced. PIDA further indicates that the capacity of
Taiwan’s PV industry in 2008 tops No.4 in a global
ranking with a total revenue of NTD 123.7 billion.
PIDA expects the PV industry to reach revenue of
NTD 270 billion in 2009 and NTD 740 billion in
2011.
The forum was concurrently held with the
ceremony of Jin-Yi Award, which is awarded
annually since 2004 to promote photovoltaic
applications and recognize individual or group
participants who apply the creations on solar
Fig.2 Winners of Jin-Yi Award and Mr. Yunn-Ming Wang, Deputy Director General, energy and photovoltaic to life of the human
Bureau of Energy, MOEA beings.
Courtesy : Photovoltaics Technology Center, ITRI
A
national team making a solar semiconductor
of scientists is thinner by one millionth of a
embarking on one metre in solar cells generating
of the United Kingdom’s one gigawatt of power.
largest research projects Researchers will also
into photovoltaic (PV) solar experiment with sustainable
energy. low-cost materials that could
The PV-21 program— be used in the manufacturing
led by experts at Durham of solar cells, and on the use
University, north England— of nanotechnology and dyes
is to focus on making thin- on ultra-thin silicon to capture
film, light-absorbing cells increased amounts of energy
for solar panels from sustainable and affordable from the sun’s rays.
materials. Principal investigator Professor Ken Durose, in
The four-year project beginning in April 2008, the Department of Physics at Durham University,
costs 6.3 million pounds and is being funded by the said “With the rapid increase in fossil fuel prices
UK’s Engineering & Physical Sciences Research and the recent UK government announcement
Council (EPSRC) under the Supergen initiative. about investment in nuclear power, it is even more
Eight UK universities, led by Durham and important that we look at long-term future energy
including Bangor, Bath, Cranfield, Edinburgh, generation from solar power.
Imperial College London, Northumbria and “At present you would need tens of tonnes
Southampton are involved in the project. of very rare and expensive materials for large-
They will work with nine industrial partners scale production of solar cells to produce sizeable
towards a medium to long-term goal of making solar amounts of power. Some of the materials currently
energy more competitive and sustainable, particularly used may not be sustainable in 20 years’ time,
in view of recent rises in fossil fuel prices. which is why we have to conduct research into
Today, solar cells— used to convert light energy alternative materials that are cheaper to buy and are
into electricity— are made from key components more sustainable,” he added.
such as the rare and expensive metal indium that “We are also leading the way in making ultra-
costs about 320 pounds sterling (660 US dollars) thin solar cells that need less material. Our medium
per kilogram. to long-term goal is to make a major contribution
To cut costs in solar cell production, the research to achieving competitive photovoltaic solar energy
team will work to reduce the thickness of the cells. which we hope will lead to an uptake in the use of
Fifty tonnes of material could be saved just by solar power,” said Professor Durose.
Fig.1 Seeing the light— Professor Ken Durose holds a sample of an absorber layer of a thin-film photovoltaic cell developed by Durham University experts in the
quest to make solar energy more sustainable and affordable.
Courtesy : Durham University
The latest funding follows an initial four- facilities at NaREC, the new Petec facilities at
year research project by PV-21 focusing on the NETPark, and great businesses such as Romag.
development of thin-layer PV cells using compound “The agency, Durham University and our other
semiconductors based on the cadmium telluride and partners are committed to building on this new
chalcopyrite systems. This work will form the basis project and our many other successes to ensure
for testing new ideas over the next four years. the region leads the UK in renewable energy,” he
Chris Pywell, the head of Strategic Economic added.
Change at regional development agency One The Engineering & Physical Sciences
NorthEast, said “This project will add substantially Research Council is the UK’s main agency for
to the position of north-east England which is funding research in its title’s areas. It invests about
already at the forefront of photovoltaic energy 740m pounds a year in research and postgraduate
research. training.
“This leading position presents a great The areas covered range from information
opportunity to the region as the world addresses technology to structural engineering, and
climate change. As well as the strengths of Durham mathematics to materials science. The EPSRC
and Northumbria universities that are demonstrated works alongside other research councils with
by this success, we have the PV development responsibility for other areas of research.
T
he world’s economy has been growing an increasing number of experts from other
weak since the financial crisis caused industries, like semiconductor.
by the subprime mortgage taking place Founded in June in 2007, Sunner Solar put up
in September 2008. And there is no exception to a manufacturing center for thin film modules. In
any country in the world, Taiwan included. While first phase, Sunner Solar employs a 25 MWp a-Si
companies across the employment spectrum PV module production line, and schedules the mass
announced job cuts in Taiwan, there are still some production in the second quarter of 2009. The next
industries recruiting in reverse, for example the phase of expansion will take place in the second
photovoltaic industry. half of 2009, with a focus on the latest thin film
According to Directorate General of Budget, product of amorphous and microcrystalline tandem.
Accounting and Statistics, a cabinet-level office The company expects to reach an overall production
handling most of the duties of the nation’s capacity of 100 MW as of 2010. At that time, there
comptroller’s office and census bureau combined, will come a third phase of expansion, which aims
Taiwan’s economy grew even sicker in February as to maximize production capacity to over 200 MW
the unemployment rate jumped to 5.75 percent in before 2012, as well as to add various products in
February to 624,000, two record highs since 1978. the PV applications and building integrated PV.
Families also sharply cut spending, underscoring
the government’s growing sense of urgency that it
needs to mount a bigger defense. To this day, lay-
Emerging requirements
offs are still in the ascendant because the global
downturn has yet come to cease. from PV clients asking
Nevertheless, there are quite a few photovoltaic
companies go all out to recruit recently because
for outstanding
“this is a circumstance which is of disadvantage cross-over talents
from job seekers’ point of view but certainly offers
better chances for hiring companies, especially the
strongly growing cleantech sector such as solar Under a tight timetable for product
power and wind power ,” said an industry analyst. development, Mr. Ou said professional talents are
Based in the Central Taiwan Science Park, the in urgent need. “Sunner Solar is racing against
industry new blood Sunner Solar Corporation is time to build up our capacity and technology R&D
absorbing talents released by the other industries strength,” Mr. Ou said, adding that the company
aggressively. Vice President Howard Ou said in is at the same time planning to construct the other
default of an adequate number of specialists in its factories within three years to overtake most of the
core sector, the solar industry has started recruiting competitors in Taiwan in the critical span of time. A
huge demand for professionals goes along with the According to Recruit Express Pte Ltd., a staffing
mid-term plan, which is a large-scaled recruitmentsolutions provider that matches the right people
for employers, recently they see a signal of from
up to 1,000 talents in the central city of Taichung.
the other sectors, for example the semiconductor
It is not unique, but has its counterpart. Smaller
players in the space are also overjoyed due to theand chemical materials.
global economy shakeout. Chip City Inc., a solar Both large and small-scale solar power
light emitting diode (LED) manufacturer based in facilities are becoming commonplace, according to
central Taiwan, is hunger for engineer salepeople Recruit Express. Underscoring the industry trend,
to cope with orders and inquiries from existing a report published by McKinsey & Company
customers and prospects. projects that solar will become more economically
Gintech Energy Corporation, a south attractive, despite technological uncertainty and
Hsinchu-based solar cells manufacturer and the continued importance of regulation. In fact
marketer invested by Everlight Electronic Co, the report states, “A new era for solar power is
LTD., a global leading manufacturer of LEDs, approaching. Long derided as uneconomic, it is
displays, infrared and photocoupler components gaining ground as technologies improve and the
serving various applications in the consumer, cost of traditional energy sources rises.”
computing, automotive, telecommunication “Financial crisis is not a PV crisis”, states
and industrial market segments, hollers for Michael Schmela, editor-in-chief of PHOTON
more experts specialized in multicrystalline and International, the photovoltaic magazine, in its
monocrystalline solar cells, multicrystalline and October 2008 edition. He points out that “demand
monocrystalline silicon solar cells. is likely to continue exceeding supply in 2009”
and that “financial lenders generally
consider solar power systems a very
safe haven for investment. ” The
Financial crisis turns forward-looking comments bring a
out to be an oppurtunity sense of optimism to the renewable
energy sector and lights up a hope for
for PV companies the future.
Notably, the magazine pointed out
a phenomenon. Temporary workers
One of the most notable things is Sino- are the first to feel the general economic crisis;
American Silicon Products Inc., one of the employees with limited working contracts will
world’s top 10 solar producers headquartered in follow. So at operator level, solar companies
Taiwan, made a loud appeal to the public for its should benefit from a noticeable relaxation of the
human resource policy in January, a time when job market during the next one to two years.
the economic slump was dashing the world. The To look ahead for a further growth of
company announced a series of measures to boost the PV industry, and in consequence, of the
morale with several guarantees, including no lay- demand for brilliant professionals, there are no
off and no unpaid leave. Sino-American Silicon significant changes or declines in the overall
even took one step ahead to call up for 400 more market situation for the next one to two years.
talents as of 2009, which was taken a move to On the contrary, there will be a surging demand
stimulate the freezing workforce market. for people in the PV industry across functions,
Aside from domestic companies, some large- from C-class executives, senior managers with
sized multinational solar power players are background in engineering, sales, marketing and
making known to the public for technical team. financing, to on-site operators.
T
aiwan-headquartered solar cell maker equipment and ancillary facilities for twenty-four
DelSolar Co., Ltd. vowed in mid April solar cell production lines expansion.
to top one of the five leading players in When the establishment completes, DelSolar’s
the world in five to seven years, and will consider annual capacity is expected to reach up to 840
expanding its business scope by cooperating with MWp. The rest 25 percent of the loan is exercised
partners. to enrich DelSolar’s midterm operating working
DelSolar expects to capitalize on its cutting- capital. In addition, the company has started its
edge technologies and the innovation resources second manufacturing site in Jiangsu province,
and rational allocation in enterprise group to gain China and expects 60 MWp this year also a full-
as much ground as it can in the coming years, R.C. scale production capacity of 240 MWp in the
Liang, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer following 2 to 3 years.
said in an interview with Photonics Industry & In a lousy economy, while most of businesses on
Technology Development Association (PIDA). the lookout for the light at the end of the tunnel some
The company’s following aggressive but time late this year or early next year are trimming
cautious action is a five-year NTD 4 billion investment in an all-round manner, the industry new
syndicated loan with a total of nine banks in mid blood consolidates at every step to deploy mid to
February. According to the company, 75 percent long term substantial growth, Mr. Liang took it as a
of the loan is used to cover DelSolar’s plant move to demonstrate the company’s determination to
investment in Taiwan, the purchase of production achieve the ultimate goal.
Fig.3 Mr. R.C. Liang, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of DelSolar Co., Ltd.
Courtesy : DelSolar Co., Ltd.
Green Energy
Technology
Aims to Top the Best
By PIDA
G
reen Energy Technology (GET), Taiwan’s in 2008, GET has enjoyed a victory over Japanese
largest maker of mono-crystal solar Kyocera Solar, Inc., one of the leading suppliers
power silicon wafers, said on April 20th of environmentally sound, solar electric energy
that it is aiming to top the best in the world by solutions, in the annual capacity to rush to the
keeping enhancing the quality of products all along world’s number 5 vendor. GET shipped 200 MWp
the line, and to accelerate to integrate resources to while Kyocera produced about 170MWp. “On the
optimize strategic alliance to solidify leadership strength of well-versed technology and talents,
position and substantial growth. we ramped up at a high speed to meet a tier one-
According to a market research report released level requirements,” said Christine Chen, Senior
Manager of investor relations office of GET in an Consulting, the silicon shortage prevented the panel
interview with PIDA reporter. makers using crystalline technology to fully respond
Although the global economy will likely to demand. Thus silicon-based panels declined from
shudder to recessionary levels in 2009 as the about 93% to about 89% market share from 2004 to
financial crisis is rippling through the western world 2007. Navigant Consulting also said that the solar
in several ways, GET works grimly to increase industry would become the largest user of raw silicon
capacity. “We persevere to crawl to an annual in 2008, outpacing the semiconductor industry.
capacity of 300 MWp by the end of 2009, which is At that time, GET decided to cross over into
one more step close to the goal,” said Ms. Chen. thin film module manufacturing to carve out the
The 5-year-old GET was born in an era that was other lucrative new business. In mid 2007, the
bustling with demand for more natural energy. Ms. largest producer of solar wafers in Taiwan teamed
Chen recalled that 2004 was a time that the most up with Applied Materials, Inc., one of the global
recent intermittent shortages of raw silicon started, leaders in equipment and service products for the
and has mainly affected makers of crystalline fabrication of semiconductor chips, flat panels
silicon solar panels “way down the road” for about and solar photovoltaic cells, to set up the first 8.5
four years. generation thin film solar module production line in
According to the other report released by the north city of Taoyuan in Taiwan.
California-based market research institute Navigant “As a wafer supplier for crystalline silicon
solar cell manufacturing, we seized become a potent sector in the market while offering
the chance to exploit new customers up to 60% electrical efficiency savings, lowering
and new business,” said Ms. Chen. carbon dioxide emissions, and providing inflation-
The company’s management team proof electricity for years,” said Ms. Chen.
hoped to use thin film technology for Ms. Chen made a comment on 2009 prospect.
solar cells to capitalize on the greater “As much as the sector hopes to see a boost in the
availability of these glass substrates and coming years as the global governments, Obama
the expanding worldwide need for cost- administration and China in particular are expected to
effective photovoltaic panels. allocate more of their spending or offer subsidies for
Ms. Chen said there are significant solar energy, we do as the law says,” said Ms. Chen.
economic advantages to large-area thin Ms. Chen took China for example. In March,
film solar technology because the thin the Asian giant announced it would provide
film solar modules use a tiny amount of subsidies for solar-power installation. “Although
silicon that they are used to. In addition, that move is expected to be more beneficial to
they can be used in application products Chinese-based companies in the sector, players
that offer attractive design features who have successfully built supply chain with local
such as “illuminating solar panels (or partners like us will likely to gain from the stimulus
Lumiwall)” where they are combined package,” said Ms. Chen.
with light emitting diodes (LED), and GET is a subsidiary of Tatung Company, a
see-through type solar panels that permit designer and manufacturer of an array of digital
natural light to pass through. consumer products, from personal computers,
The thin film technology is based on liquid crystal display televisions (LCD TV), to
copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) home appliances. Since the establishment in
arranged on a flexible backing, suitable July in 2004, GET has engaged in the directional
for both the tops and the sides of solidification crystal growth system (DSS)
buildings, tinted windows, cell phones, since it began to invest in the crystal growth in
notebook computers and cars. Thin film mid 2004, with main products of multi-crystal
solar panels are “printed” onto the rolled silicon wafers (125×125 mm or 156×156 mm)
backing, eliminating many of the highly energy in thicknesses ranging from 325~200 µm, and
and chemical intensive processes that are typical in single-crystal ingots and wafers. The directional
convention PV manufacture. solidification is a series of measures applied to
Ms. Chen said GET obtained certification from control the feeding of castings, and is frequently
Germany-based TÜV Rheinland for its smaller- employed as a purification step in the production
sized 5-generation amorphous silicon (a-Si) thin- of multicrystalline silicon for solar cells.
film photovoltaic (PV) modules (1.1×1.3 m in
panel size) after they were shipped to in March for
validation. The company expects to be granted such
certification for 8.5-generation models (2.2×2.6 m)
in the third quarter of this year.
Ms. Chen added GET plans to target rapidly-
growing applications for these more cost-
effective, large-area modules, such as power plant
and building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV)
installations. “The sharp decline of the costs of PV,
along with global government subsidies in Europe, Fig.2 Green Energy’s plant
Courtesy : Green Energy Technology
the United States and China, enable the industy to
A
lthough economic crisis affects all sectors of the industry, Photonics Festival in Taiwan (PFT) 2009, held from
June 10 to June 12 2009, shows the vigorousness of Taiwan photonics industry. This year, this exhibition
boasts another 1300 booths, among all, more exhibitors registered in the PFT exhibition, in which the number
of booths rises from 660 to 800, showing a 21% growth. This is mostly due to the bright performance of the LED
Lighting Taiwan and Solar Taiwan sectors.
According to show host PIDA, it is going to be another splendid year for PFT because:
■ Connected with Computex (world's No.2 ICT & its application show), bringing continuing trade visitor flow
from computex and stimulating trading atmosphere, as illustrated in Fig.1.
■ Co-located with Display Taiwan (The primer Display show in Asia). All the photonics & optoelectronics are
under one roof, building cross industrial cooperation.
■ Besides, energy saving LED lighting + energy generating Solar cell will boost the momentum of PFT.
E
choing the bright performance of the integration and even upper stream polysilicon
photovoltaic industry in Taiwan, SOLAR production fields. And Solar Taiwan is going to be
Taiwan 2009, held from June 10 to the place where business opportunities are created.
June 12 2009, is set to be another success story Following the success of the first event of
among the siblings in the Photonics Festival in its kind in 2008, Solar Taiwan comprises more
Taiwan family. Riding high with clean energy and exhibitors than that in 2008, with many leading
environmental protection issues, Solar Taiwan players in the industry attending. Taiwanese PV
brings you the latest technology breakthrough and maker Sinonar Solar and Japanese PV maker
full vision of the solid infrastructure of Taiwan’s Nisshinbo will be there to show their latest products
solar cell manufacturers. and development.
Taiwan has now become an important According to show host PIDA, the exhibitors
manufacturing base for solar cell productions this year should reveal the progress of the
and has thus been establishing a complete supply Taiwan industry. “We can see that Taiwan’s PV
chain, please refer to Fig.1. With their strength in manufacturers are growing rapidly,” noted Stephy
ingot, wafer, solar cell, and module productions, Chen, PIDA’s PV analyst, who has researched PV
Taiwan manufacturers are working to cooperate industry for nearly ten years.
with companies in system installation, project This year, the introduction of Advance Green
Polysilicon
Photonics Zone also helps boost the vision of Solar companies stepped into the solar business based
Taiwan 2009. According to show organizer PIDA, on their strengths in optics and laser technology.
the Advance Green Photonics Zone will exhibit “Taiwanese equipment makers had extended the
innovative green products from domestic industry business from automation systems and to process
and academia, exhibits including award-winning equipments, such as plasma deposition and
products, posters promoting green energy, vehicles furnace,” she added.
powered by solar energy, models symbolizing the Other than the mainstream technologies, such as
use of solar power and LED lighting technologies. wafer type and thin film type, GaAs solar cell and
Besides, a model for the main venue of the World CIGS were displayed this year. Last year, M-Com
Games 2009 Kaohsiung will be exhibited at the had demonstrated a GaAs solar cell with the
Advance Green Photonics Zone as well. conversion rate above 25%, what will be the next,
Moreover, a lot of Taiwanese optoelectronics please come to Solar Taiwan to find out more
CREE XLAMP LEDs. THE CHOICE WHEN 4 BILLION PEOPLE ARE WATCHING.
®
THAT’S LIGHTING-CLASS.
Built to deliver energy-efficient beautiful light, Cree XLamp LEDs outperform all
others in brightness and efficacy. And they prove it daily at thousands of
commercial, architectural and residential installations worldwide.
AU Optronics
Product:
46” FHD Eco Plus Panel
AUO 46” FHD Eco Plus Panel is a 46” Full HD AMVA3 model plus double frame rate (120Hz) and stylish feature,
which is a high-end model for TV. It presents not only sexy looks but also environmental consciousness. The
versatile green panel encompasses all green concepts such as power-efficiency, weight reduction, slimness,
and enhancement on package efficiency. Most important of all, Eco plus panel is not just a conceptive product
but a MP ready model.
Feature:
1. Eco friendly low power consumption: 150W 5. High color depth: 1.07B color
2. World wide lightest 46” panel: <9Kg 6. Slim thickness (<20mm)
3. High brightness: 500nits 7. Narrow bezel (14mm)
4. High contrast ratio: 5000:1 8. Packing efficiency increase 66%
Himax Display
Product:
HX7027
HX7027ATGFA is an active matrix liquid crystal display with resolution of 640X480XRGB dots. HX7027ATGFA is
ideal for portable and industrial applications. Horizontal digital data drivers and vertical scan drivers are integrated
with single crystal pixel transistors meet the performance demands of light weight, high speed and high resolution
applications. HX7027ATGFA receives 8-bits x 3-dots (RGB) of digital display data per clock simultaneously and
generates corresponding voltage output of 256 level gray scales, which displays 16M colors simultaneously.
Feature:
1. Resolution of 640x480x3
2. No spacers in the display area
3. RGB 8-bit digital inputs
4. Integrated horizontal data and vertical scan drivers
5. Horizontal and vertical bi-directional scanning
6. Embedded DE mode timing controller
7. Maximum 15V power input
8. Capable of displaying 256 gray scales by 12 internal reference voltages
9. Embedded programmable gamma reference voltages
10. Embedded programmable VCOM voltage
11. Two-wire serial interface for internal register setting
Wintek Corporation
Product:
Multi-Touch Resistive Touch Panel
Comparing to traditional 4-wired resistive touch
panel, Multi-Touch Resistive Touch Panel is the
ITO patterning procedure on top and bottom ITO
films. Therefore the multi touch function is easily
realized through the digital driving method by the
controller IC.
Feature:
1. Operated by pen or gestures
2. A highly innovative ITO patterning structure in
the resistive touch panel.
3. Single and multi touch function via touch panel
controller
4. Flat surface— by laminating Deco film on the
resistive touch panel
Function:
• MTF Measurement
• BFL Measurement
• TV line measuring
Chang-Yu Technology
Co.,Ltd.
www.cyttw.com.tw
TCO Development
www.tcodevelopment.com
www.greenitedge.com
EMIT TECHNOLOGY
CO., LTD.
www.emit.com.tw
Features:
• 6.0mm pixel pitch with SMD LED
(3 color in one).
• Thickness is 20mm.
• Power saving: typical operating <20W.
• System embedded.
• No thermal issue.
EISO ENTERPRISE
CO., LTD
www.eiso.com.tw