Eric Wesoff

SVTC Part 2: A New and Crucial Piece of the PV Ecosystem June 30, 2008 at 9:56 AM

Scenario 1: Let’s say you’re a newly funded silicon solar startup and want to experiment in the wafer manufacturing process. You go to your VC investors and ask them for $25M to buy and install a small silicon wafer production line.

Scenario 2: Let’s say you’re a process development engineer at an existing, up and running solar firm. You have a brilliant idea on how to improve the production process, so you ask your manufacturing director if you can make some changes on the commercial production line.

In both cases the likely response will be a resounding “No way” along with a few extra words from George Carlin’s list.

Now, the Silicon Valley Photovoltaic Development Center can help those aspiring start-ups and as well as incumbent manufacturers make those process changes.

SVTC, a long-time process development foundry for the semiconductor industry, is about to provide that same service to photovoltaic markets through their newly launched Silicon Valley Photovoltaic Development Center (SVPDC).

The SVPDC has released a spate of announcements of late:

• Roth & Rau will outfit the center with a 5MW 6” silicon wafer turnkey solar pilot line.

• JA Solar signed a LOI to locate its North American R&D operations in the SVPDC

• The city of San Jose and the California Employment Training Panel Fund will invest ~$200K in equipment and training funds to help situate the SVPDC in a new clean-technology business park.

• And other unnamed solar start-ups have agreed to use the center for their solar development efforts.

The center provides the building, clean rooms, labs, equipment, and a baseline PV cell process to aspiring and existing PV manufacturers – allowing competitors to work side by side while keeping IP safe and separate.

Scott Marquardt, VP of Sales, Marketing and Business Development at SVTC said, “Trying to do modifications on the fly on an existing silicon line is very difficult – that’s what the center provides.”

“Real commercialization is our sweet spot,” he added.

The SVPDC will also be able to provide process development services to non-silicon PV firms as well as packaging and possibly help with testing and certification.

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