Centrotherm unveils Indian subsidiary

 

Centrotherm Photovoltaics AG, a supplier of process technology and equipment for the production of solar silicon, solar cells and solar modules, which are used in solar power generation, announced the launch on Friday of its Indian subsidiary that is to be based in Bangalore.

Kai Vogt, Director, International Business Development, Centrotherm, told this correspondent that although investor interest in solar power generation was growing, “India has a lot of catching up to do when compared with countries like China, South Korea and Taiwan, where solar power generation capacity has been growing at a scorching pace in recent years.” Mr. Vogt said that the installed capacity in India would be about 100 MW, as compared to 5-6 giga watts in China. He said the Indian subsidiary would not establish manufacturing capacities immediately, but would provide service, strengthen sales and help customers in “inducting the latest technologies.”

Arguing that the cost of photovoltaic (PV) modules is critical, Mr. Vogt claimed Centrotherm's technology offered a solar to electrical energy conversion efficiency of about 18.5 per cent, which he said “is the highest in the business.” “Mind you, a every percentage point improvement in efficiency translates into a six percentage point reduction in costs, which is extremely critical for the adoption of solar power,” he said. “We hope to achieve an efficiency rate of 20 per cent by the end of 2012,” he said. Last year, the company, based in Germany, invested 50 million euro in R&D out of total revenues of 600 million euro, he said. The disaster at the nuclear facility in Fukushima in Japan had caused governments all over the world to “reconsider the nuclear option, which places greater responsibility on solar power to mitigate the effects of global warming,' Mr. Vogt said.

Kolan Saravanan, General Manager of the Indian subsidiary, Centrotherm Photovoltaics India Pvt. Ltd., said the subsidies provided to solar power in Germany had been responsible for its growth in the last few years. “Already, in many places solar power is just as expensive as peak load tariffs from traditional sources of electrical power, he claimed. “The solar cell manufacturing capacity in India is now about 500 MW, and is expected to reach about 800 MW by the end of 2011,” Mr. Saravanan said. The National Solar Mission has targeted a capacity of 20 GW by 2022, he said. “Our efforts in India must be seen in the context of the mission's mandate that crystalline solar cells destined for the domestic market must also be manufactured locally,” he said.