InternatIonal PhotovoltaIc equIPment assocIatIon IPvea.org

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Issued on behalf of the International Photovoltaic Equipment Association (IPVEA). IPVEA has used its best efforts to ensure that all the information in this publication is up-to-date. Any warranty to the correctness and actuality can not be assumed. IPVEA reserves the right to make changes or additions to the information made available at any time without notice. © 2012 International Photovoltaic Equipment Association. All rights reserved. Contents may not be reproduced by any means, in whole or part, without the prior written permission of the publisher. The opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of IPVEA.

update

March 2012

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Savings & DiscountsRestructures, cuts and divestments are evident as the equipment segment adjusts to the solar downturn and prepares to face on-going tough market conditions, created by production overcapacity and price declines.

At Meyer Burger Group, which has businesses across the solar PV value chain, net sales increased by 59% to CHF1,315 million (€1,091 million) in 2011, compared with CHF826.0 million in 2010. Organic growth was 44%, whereas 15% of growth was based on the Roth & Rau AG acquisition.

Roth & Rau, acquired by Meyer Burger in April 2011, will carry out additional restructuring, including combining existing locations with sales and service companies of Meyer Burger Group and reduce staff at Hohenstein-Ernstthal. With all the measures taken since autumn of 2011, Roth & Rau will continue to refocus on its core competences. In view of the continuing challenging market situation in PV and despite a good order backlog, Meyer Burger remains cautious regarding the outlook for 2012. At this point in time, there is little market visibility about the timing of new investment programmes by cell and module manufacturers.

BTU International recorded net sales of $76.1 million for 2011, 6.7% down compared with $81.6 million for 2010.

Overall sales for Manz are up by 33% on the previous year, though the FPD industry is largely responsible, buoyed by demand for touchscreen computers. Despite continuing tough conditions, Manz also recorded a 10.5% increase in the solar segment, with sales rising to €72.6 million from €65.7 million in the previous year.

Growth in the form of equipment for lithium-ion batteries has helped Manz post strong results. Though smaller than both the FPD and solar segment the New Business division, incorporating batteries, has established itself as a third mainstay with another new record turnover of €9.5 million, compared with the previous year of €3.6 million.

Continued on page 2>>

EXCLUSIVEPage 06

South American Appeal

financial results confirm a tough 2011 for the solar equipment segment

FINAl CAll FOR PAPERs: 3RD PV PRODuCTION FORuM 2012IPVEA members are invited to supply presentation outlines for the 3rd PV Production Forum 2012, organised by IPVEA, Eu PVsEC and PV-Tech.org. FULL DETAILS PAGE 04

2 | IPVEA uPDATE | MARCH 2012

MEMBER NEWS

Continued from page 1

preliminary financial results confirm a tough 2011 for the solar equipment segment Bürkle was able to offset lower demand from the solar industry against its better performing businesses. Compared with other equipment suppliers the laminator supplier has been able to more quickly adjust to the decreasing demand for solar modules as its machines are used at the end of the process chain and the slowdown began to affect orders in the second quarter of 2011.

Bürkle is still counting on its PV business, once overcapacities are sold and demand picks up for its machines that enable shortened laminating times. In 2012 the company anticipates the PV industry will account for 20% of its sales.

lack of customer investment in solar module production lines led to an order intake 12% lower compared with 2010, despite Oerlikon Solar receiving its first order from Asia for a complete 120 MW ThinFab production line.

To balance its portfolio Oerlikon Group has taken the decision to sell its solar subsidiary to Tokyo Electron limited (TEl) in Japan, subject to merger approvals. TEl’s core business is supplying equipment for the flat-panel display (FPD) and semiconductor industries and the deal will enable it to grow its solar business by supplying emerging solar markets in Asia and elsewhere.

Oerlikon Group continues its involvement in the solar industry through its other subsidiaries, Oerlikon leybold Vacuum and Oerlikon systems.

The solar segment of Komax Group also performed reasonably well helping it to sustain revenue growth in 2011 of 9% to around CHF370 million, compared with CHF340.2 million in 2010. While the solar industry downturn resulted in a significant drop in new orders at Komax solar during the second half of 2011, the subsidiary benefitted from a good order backlog at the end of the first quarter and was, nevertheless, able to increase sales on 2010.

other member news Solibro

Solibro buys Dr. Schenk measurement technology system for CIGS production line

Q-Cell’s subsidiary Solibro, which makes CIGS thin film solar modules, has ordered Dr. schenk’s metrology system solarInspect.

The system is integrated into the front-end of solibro’s module line where it inspects and analyses the scribes of the complete module surface after P3.

solibro’s Q.sMART solar modules achieved a world record efficiency of 17.4% (aperture area) in 2011. The modules are produced in an in-line process and the solarInspect system allows for optical inspection of the solar cells during their production without delaying the production process.

‘Dr. schenk’s solarInspect enables us to sort out those modules even faster that do not match our strict quality requirements regarding scribing. In this way we can continue to optimize the production of our high-energy yielding CIGs-products’, explains Dr lars Bach, Director Front-End Operation at solibro GmbH (Q-Cells sE).

Dr. schenk is a leading supplier of test and measurement solutions for thin film solar modules of all technologies and generations (CdTe, CIs/CIGs, asi/μsi, OPV and DCs) among others. More than 80 thin film PV measurement systems are installed worldwide.

www.drschenk.com

IPVEA uPDATE | MARCH 2012 | 3

MEMBER NEWS

innolaS and ricmar

InnoLas and Ricmar strengthen their respective Asian networks

Innolas systems and Ricmar have both announced local partnerships to reinforce their presence in their respective Asian markets.

InnoLas Systems has signed a cooperation agreement with DKsH, a leading provider of services covering cutting-edge technical systems.

DKsH will represent Innolas systems in south Korea and Japan to provide customers in the photovoltaic industry with pre- and after-sales support.

Innolas CEO Richard Grundmüller says: “We are proud to work with DKsH as they have very deep knowledge of

the hi-tech markets in Asia. This cooperation will ensure customers in south Korea and Japan receive outstanding consultancy and technical support people expect from Innolas”.

EVG-Jointech Corporation has become a new representative for Ricmar in Taiwan.

Chung-li based EVG-Jointech will be Ricmar’s contact for technology transfer and customer support.

EVG-Jointech has been created out of the successful former regional team with members from EVG and the representative company for EVG equipment in Taiwan.

www.innolas-systems.com

www.ricmar.com

SinguluS

ISFH and Singulus achieve 20.1% efficient screen printed silicon solar cell with new rear passivation layer

The Institute for solar Energy Research Hamelin (IsFH) in collaboration with singulus Technologies has increased the conversion efficiency of screen-printed silicon solar cells to 20.1%.

The 20.1%, confirmed by Fraunhofer ISE, is one of the highest efficiencies worldwide reported for industrial type silicon solar cells with screen printed metallisation. About 80% of today’s industrially made solar cells apply p-type crystalline Czochralski (Cz) silicon wafers in combination with screen printed metal contacts. Hence, efficiency improvements for this type of solar cell are the focus of intensive research worldwide.

An inductively coupled plasma (ICP)-AlOx / siNy double layer at the rear side of the solar cell enables the efficiency increase without applying a ‘selective emitter’. singulus Technologies is developing an integrated production solution for the passivation layer stack.

The result was achieved within the research project Highscreen funded by the German Federal Ministry of the Environment and also funded by its project partners solarWorld, schott solar, solland solar Cells GmbH, Rena and singulus Technologies.

Additionally IsFH’s collaboration with DEK solar, Ferro Corporation and Heraeus, has accelerated the breakthrough, according to Dr Rolf Brendel, Director of IsFH.

www.singulus.de

How the efficiency enhancement has been achieved

An ICP-AlOx/siNy double layer passivates the rear surface of the solar cell. ICP - inductively coupled plasma - is a new deposition method for AlOx developed at IsFH with singulus Technologies.

The screen printed aluminium on the cell’s rear side locally contacts the silicon wafer through line shaped contact openings formed by laser ablation. The modified cell rear improves reflection and reduces the charge carrier recombination which increases both the current and voltage of the solar cell.

The cell front side is metallized using a ‘print on print’ process, which results in a reduced contact finger width and hence less shadowing loss. This screen printing process was optimized at IsFH with DEK solar, using the company’s Eclipse screen printing platform and precision screens.

Beyond these innovations, the solar cell applies typical industrial processes, in particular a homogeneously phosphorus diffused emitter and a 156 x 156 mm2 large Cz silicon wafer.

4 | IPVEA uPDATE | MARCH 2012

MEMBER NEWS

abb

ABB takes part in European smart grid project

Power and automation technology group ABB is a partner in Grid4Eu, a consortium of 27 organisations that aims to reduce carbon emissions by improving efficiency and facilitating demand response in electrical distribution networks.

Grid4Eu (large-scale Demonstration of Advanced smart Grid solutions with wide Replication and scalability Potential for EuROPE) will drive development of cost-effective systems for supervision and control in parts of distribution networks that previously did not have this facility, deemed essential for the safe integration of distributed renewable resources while maintaining grid reliability.

The project will focus on the large-scale demonstration of systems and technologies for distribution networks that can be replicated and implemented across Europe.

The consortium comprises six leading European Distribution system Operators (who together supply more than 50% of Europe’s electricity consumers), electricity retailers, manufacturers and research organizations. GRID4Eu will run for over four years.

The project will also support the dynamic management of electricity supply and demand, further supporting renewable integration and enable consumers to become active participants in the grid.

The Grid4Eu project comprises six large-scale, smart grid demonstration networks in six different countries. ABB will participate in three of these networks working with RWE in Germany, Vattenfall in sweden and CEZ in Czech Republic.

www.abb.com

Targray

Targray launches next generation higher efficiency aluminium paste for solar cells

Targray Technology International announces the availability of Giga solar Materials Corporation’s next generation of aluminium paste for mono and multi-crystalline silicon solar cells.

The new line has been optimized for a variety of requirements including higher efficiency, higher peak firing temperatures, hot water test and superior adhesion.

“Cell manufacturers are constantly looking for low bowing aluminium pastes in order to save costs and move to thinner silicon wafers while maintaining low cell breakage rates,” said Patrick Boutard, PV Product Manager, Targray.

Rear aluminum paste must provide an excellent back surface field to enable high cell efficiency.

www.targray.com

Final Call for Papers: 3rd PV Production Forum 2012IPVEA members are invited to supply presentation outlines to be reviewed for inclusion in the 3rd PV Production Forum 2012, organised by IPVEA, EU PVSEC and PV-Tech.org.

The one day event will be held within the auspices of the 27th EU PVSEC 2012 exhibition taking place in Frankfurt, Germany, 24-28 September 2012.

PV Production Forum provides attendees with best practices and case studies on how to increase throughput, efficiency and save money in PV production. The 2nd PV Production Forum 2011 drew over 200 attendees with a programme line-up that included Applied Materials, Suntech, VLSI Research, Siemens and Fraunhofer IPA.

The link for registering presentation outlines is http://www.ipvea.org/index.php?id=431http://www.ipvea.org/index.php?id=431and the deadline is 31 March 2012.

IPVEA uPDATE | MARCH 2012 | 5

MEMBER NEWS

iPVEa mEmbEr comPaniES

3S Modultec3S Photovoltaics 3-S Swiss Solar Systems AGABB Automation GmbHAEG Power Solutions GmbHAIS Automation Dresden GmbHAMB Apparate + Maschinenbau GmbHApplied MaterialsASYS Automatisierungssysteme GmbHBosch Rexroth Mechatronics GmbHBTU International, Inc.Buerkle GmbHCh2M HillDay4 Eco-tecDecker Anlagenbau GmbHDek Solar GmbHDespatch IndustriesDiamond Materials Tech, IncDr. Schenk GmbH IndustriemesstechnikDr. Schwab Inspection Technology GmbHE+H Metrology GmbHFerrotec GmbHGfE Metalle und Materialien GmbHGrenzebach Maschinenbau GmbHHeateflex CorporationHennecke Systems GmbHHermann Otto GmbHICOS Vision SystemsINA LineartechnikInnolas GmbHINTEVACISRA VISION AGJonas & Redmann Photovoltaic’s Production Solutions GmbHKitec microelectronic technologie GmbHKLA-TencorKomax Solar AGKuka Systems Corporation North AmericaKuka Systems GmbHLayTec GmbHLeybold Optics GmbHLinde AGLohmann GmbH & Co. KGLOTUS Systems GmbHLpkf SolarQuipment GmbH

LSW Maschinenfabrik GmbHM+W Germany GmbHManz AGMeier Solar Solutions GmbHMeyer Burger Services / Meyer Burger AGMeyer Burger AG – Swiss Slicing SystemsMeyer Burger Automation GmbHMeyer Burger Robotics / Meyer Burger WafertecNewport Spectra - Physics GmbHOC Oerlikon Management AG, PfaffikonOerlikon Leybold Vacuum GmbHOerlikon Solar / Oerlikon SystemsOrtner c.l.s. GmbHOTB Solar B.V.Pall GmbHPASAN SAPLANSEE High Performance MaterialsReis GmbH & Co. KG MaschinenfabrikRENA GmbHRICMAR Technology GmbHRobert Burkle GmbHRofin Baasel Lasertech GmbH & Co. KGRoth & Rau – Ortner GmbH / Roth & Rau AGRoth & Rau Italy S.r.l.Schaeffler Technologies GmbHSCHILLER AUTOMATION GmbH & Co. KGSchmid GmbH + Co., Gebr.SEMILAB Semiconductor Physics Laboratory, Co., Ltd.SENTECH Instruments GmbHSierra Therm Production FurnacesSika AGSINGULUS STANGL SOLAR GmbHSLS Solar Line Saxony GmbHSmit Ovens B.V.Soleras LtdSomont GmbHSTEIN Automation GmbH & Co. KGSYNOVA S.A.Targray Technology International Inc.Team Technik Maschinen und Anlagen GmbHTecnofimes S.r.lTempress Systems B.V.TRUMPF Laser- und Systemtechnik GmbH + Co. KGVeeco Instruments GmbHVITRONIC Dr.-Ing. Stein Bildverarbeitungssysteme GmbHVON ARDENNE Anlagentechnik GmbH

6 | IPVEA uPDATE | MARCH 2012

EXCLUSIVE by Sara Ver-Bruggen

This article was based

on information provided

by Wolf Research LLC

www.wolfresearch.net

Rising electricity demand across Latin & Central America

and the Caribbean requires new sources of energy creating

opportunities for solar PV, from utility to residential

Across latin, Central America and the Caribbean electricity demand is rising, by as much as 30% in some countries. Each region presents significant opportunities for solar PV but also various challenges to establish capacity and markets for this versatile source of renewable energy generation.

Overall the region has been identified as a key market for global investment in renewable energy capacity and technologies over the next few years. Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) plans to double its renewable and ‘clean’ energy project lending capacity by up to $3 billion in the region. On the downside, there remains a lack of coherent policy frameworks and incentives. In many markets development of PV will need to be pursued without policy support. In the region only three countries offer a feed-in tariff – Ecuador, Argentina and the Dominican Republic – though other types of incentive mechanisms, such as net metering are increasingly popular.

In latin America rapidly expanding electricity is creating a need for solar PV and other forms of renewable energy generation, along with growing concerns for energy security and increasing awareness of green power generation.

In Central America, drivers for solar PV include growing demand, which is difficult to meet

due to the fragmentation of the subregion’s electricity market. Opportunities for distributed generation in the form of off-grid and residential generation – which accounts for the majority of energy consumption in Central America – means solar PV is a suitable generation technology.

Despite a doubling in energy demand over this decade, the Caribbean – with its high electricity tariffs, high and volatile fuel prices, limited economies of scale or diversity in electricity – is a tough market to crack, compounded by energy demand expected to double in the next decade.

markETS Brazil, followed by Mexico, represents the largest market for solar PV. Both countries together, account for over half of the region’s demand. In Brazil, from utility to residential, installations across all segments are expected to grow and various utilities and agencies are calling for bids for pilot and demonstration PV installations.

Solar prospects south of the border

IPVEA uPDATE | MARCH 2012 | 7

FEATURE

According to IMs Research PV installations in Brazil and Mexico are expected to be 157 MW each respectively in 2014, growing to 207 MW and 188 MW respectively in 2015. By then the region’s installed PV capacity is forecast to almost reach 700 MW.

incEnTiVESBrazil is one of the few countries close to grid parity for solar, and most types of installations, including commercial, residential and large/utility-scale are economically viable. By introducing tax incentives for solar PV, Brazil could help to stimulate investment in the sector and the government is considering a proposal that would allow taxpayers to deduct 25-100% of the cost of solar systems from their income tax.

under Mexico’s net-metering scheme, large- and small-scale installations are progressing.

Other countries in the region are in various stages of making preparations to exploit their renewable energy (RE) resources. In Chile, for example, a new renewable energy law is imminent, according to the Chilean Association for Renewable Energies. Peru’s Ministry of Energy and Mines says has issued several tenders for RE projects and pledges to continue support development of its RE resources, including solar PV. In the Dominican Republic the approval of a net-metering regulation last year has incentivised demand for grid-tied solar, supported by further incentives. However, excessive bureaucracy risks hampering the further growth of solar PV in this promising market.

Solar PV inSTallaTion SEgmEnTSAccording to IMs Research across Central & latin America and the Caribbean, utility projects will lead solar growth by a substantial measure. Commercial, broken down fairly equally between large-,

medium- and small-scale will account for a substantial portion of growth also, while growth of off-grid will slightly exceed that of residential. By 2015, IMs forecasts the utility market to account for 404 MW, large-scale commercial to account for 91 MW, medium and small scale to each account for 87 MW, off-grid to account for 50 MW and residential for 47 MW.

PrEParaTionSsolar companies looking to enter markets in Central & latin America and the Caribbean should be fully briefed and up-to-date on all federal, state, local and utility incentives in each individual market. Rebates and incentives should be factored into customer bids to convey the true cost of an installed system. All products need to be properly certified for each market being targeted and suppliers should ensure all training and certification is current and that end-users and partners fully understand system

performance estimates gathered from site analysis and system design tools.

Across the region, green energy is a hot topic so solar companies should maximise their marketing efforts, by speaking at forums and different groups to reach all potential customer groups and by promoting efforts, activity and projects to newspapers, radio and other local media. These opportunities should be used to promote partners. It will communicate that a network is in place to deliver projects and mentioning respected, reliable local partners helps to build a brand’s credibility in new markets.

2011129 MW

2012297 MW

2013439 MW

2014555 MW

2015691 MW

Brazil = 31Mexico = 13Chile = 27Dom. Rep = 37Peru = 2Argentina = 9Paraguay = 6Rest* = 4

Brazil = 56Mexico = 50Chile = 37Dom. Rep = 42Peru = 84Argentina = 14Paraguay = 8Rest* = 7

Brazil = 106Mexico = 137Chile = 52Dom. Rep = 52Peru = 45Argentina = 22Paraguay = 15Rest* = 10

Brazil = 157Mexico = 157Chile = 62Dom. Rep = 63Peru = 52Argentina = 31Paraguay = 20Rest* = 13

Brazil = 207Mexico = 188Chile = 73Dom. Rep = 73Peru = 57Argentina = 52Paraguay = 26Rest * = 17

PV Installations by Country MW

* Excluding USA and Canada

Source: IMS Research; Photon International

8 | IPVEA uPDATE | MARCH 2012

Key eVents5-6 April 2012Bristol Hotel, Odessa, ukraine

ciSolar-2012Conference on solar Energy in Eastern Europe and the CIs – CIsOlAR 2012 – is the most important meeting place for players in the solar energy industry, whose activity is connected with projects in emerging markets in Eastern Europe and CIs countries.

CIsOlAR continues the success of the forum REF-2011, which for the last several years, has been the leading business forum in the field of renewable energy in the CIS.

IPVEA members are entitled to a 10% discount to the event and the same applies to 4th International Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Forum REF-2012 - 16-17 October 2012 in Kyiv, ukraine.

http://rencentre.com/en/cisolar#

19-20 April 2012Mahatma Mandir Convention Centre (MMCC), Gandhinagar, Gujarat

indian Solar inVESTmEnT & TEcHnology 2012 SummiT & EXHibiTionThe Indian solar Investment & Technology summit 2012 (IsIT 2012) will bring together senior government officials, with the global solar industry to discuss the latest industrial policies, India’s solar projects progress and advanced technology solutions and equipment selection.

Conference themes:

� Investment - The signifi cance of solar in India

� Technology & Manufacturing - Potential for PV R&D & technological development in India

� Development - Identifying areas for project deployment in India

www.solarsummitindia.com/

16-18 May 2012

shanghai New International Expo Center, China

SnEc PV PoWEr EXPo 2012 6TH inTErnaTional Solar induSTry & PHoToVolTaic EXHibiTion & conFErEncEFollowing the success of five previous SNEC events, shanghai New Energy Industry Association (sNEIA) plans to hold the 6th (2012) International Photovoltaic Power Generation Conference & Exhibition, sNEC (2012) from May 16-18 at shanghai New International Expo Center.

www.snec.org.cn

25-28 September 2012Frankfurt, Germany

27TH EuroPEan PHoToVolTaic Solar EnErgy conFErEncE and EXHibiTionEu PVsEC, the leading conference and exhibition in the field of photovoltaics comprises more than 1,500 presentations in plenary, oral and visual sessions.

In addition, the 27th Eu PVsEC offers;

Parallel events, such as: � 9th European PV Industry summit, jointly organised

with EPIA, the European Photovoltaic Industry Association

� 3rd PV Production Forum 2012, jointly organised with IPVEA and PV-Tech.org

� Eu PVsEC Business Forum 2012, focusing questions for the global PV industries

subjects include: � Materials studies, new concepts & ultra-high efficiency � Wafer-based silicon solar cells & materials technology � Thin film solar cells (including OPV) � Components for PV systems � PV systems � PV – a major electricity source

10% discount on raw booth space for IPVEA members.

www.photovoltaic-conference.com

IPVEA members are entitled to a 10% discount to the event and the same applies to 4th International Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Forum REF-2012 - 16-17 October 2012 in Kyiv, ukraine.

10% discount on raw booth space for IPVEA members.

http://www.photovoltaic-conference.com/

10 | IPVEA uPDATE | MARCH 2012

in india, as grid-connected solar projects increase in number and in size developers look to project financing to fund bigger projects, bringing new challenges.

Policy driVing uP inTErEST Despite setting ambitious renewable energy targets India has so far taken tentative steps to develop its solar, particularly PV, capacity. under the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) the Indian government has set a target of 15% of generation to come from renewable energy by 2020, translating roughly into 72 GW of installed capacity. The Jawaharlal Nehru National solar Mission, which is one of eight programmes launched under the NAPCC, targets 20 GW of solar by 2022.

The first batch of PV tenders under Phase I of the National solar Mission amount to 150 MW. In Batch II of Phase I the allotted PV capacity of 350 MW drew 154 bidders, 218 projects, totalling 2515 MW for review. Out of these, 28 projects – in the range of 5-20 MW – have been chosen, most in the state of Rajasthan. Developers include Welspun solar AP, Mahindra solar One, Azure Power India and Green Infra solar Farms.

The National solar Mission has been important for generating market interest in solar and PV, and other states have since followed its

10 | IPVEA uPDATE | MARCH 2012

EXCLUSIVE by Sara Ver-Bruggen

India’s utility solar market takes shape

IPVEA uPDATE | MARCH 2012 | 11

example and come up with their own solar policies. These include Gujarat, which is targeting about 3000 MW in the next five years. The northwestern state was the first in India to issue permits for solar projects, awarding so far 900 MW of capacity, of which 455 MW of plants have been completed, according to a recent Bloomberg report. Another 145 MW has been built in time for connection to the grid by 31 March 2012.

Gujarat is expected to issue a new policy next month to draw more investments for solar plants. The state’s grid transmission system is also being upgraded in order to distribute 500 MW of solar power from the Charanka solar Park, which will use thin film PV technology and should be completed in 2014. Other states with their own solar policies include Rajasthan, which is targeting 200 MW in 2013 and 400 MW by 2017. The National solar Mission has also been important for driving down the tariff.

As projects get bigger, financing from equity or balance sheet funding is superseded by project financing, which is supported by loans from investment banks on the basis of projected cash flows of the project in question. This creates more complex challenges for PV developers and engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractors, by placing emphasis on a technology’s reliability and other criteria for establishing bankability. These issues

and the state of the Indian PV market were discussed in a recent webinar, hosted by PV Insider.

One of the webinar’s presenters, Chandan Guha who is CEO of Mahindra solar One, observed: “Execution, land procurement, evacuation, transmission line. These are the developer’s responsibilities – it was never easy. It is not easy now. The good news is that clearly demand for solar PV is rising and there is a strong government commitment.”

As far as the bank is concerned the credibility of developer is key, according to Guha. He said “Is solar a technology business with a good understanding of costs or is it a financing business altogether with some relevance to technology? It’s probably a bit of both. The issues include: bankability at the right cost; deployed systems, global scale critical to achieve cost competitiveness, strong robust performance guarantees that help not only the developer but more importantly the bank who is lending the money, degradation and warranties to prove these will last 25 years and disprove scepticism.”

Regulatory and off-taker risk around power purchase agreements (PPA) are reasonably secure said Guha. PPA contracts are between the party generating the electricity, the seller, and the electricity buyer, which in most cases is a government entity in

emerging and developing markets. In Gujarat developers have more or less received payment, though some other state electricity boards have had issues. According to a recent report in The Hindu, Mahindra Group has called for a payment guarantee in the case of solar projects under various state schemes, where payment defaults by state electricity boards are not uncommon in some cases.

PV ValuE cHain in india India’s approximate 1.3 GW of annual PV module manufacturing capacity is in excess of domestic market demand and before the National solar Mission, India relied heavily on exports, which accounted for 80% of annual output. Over the last two years upstream PV manufacturing has seen the most investment with more cell makers entering the market and expanding cell capacity. In terms of thin film PV there is one manufacturer and others are expected to enter the market in future.

In the wake of the Chinese boom in PV production Indian manufacturers have lost ground. This will need to be addressed if Indian manufacturers are to be able to provide cost-competitive products. “While the focus within the PV industry is on reducing production costs and enhancing cell efficiencies, Indian companies are not responsible for these breakthroughs.” said Amit Barve General Manager solar of schott solar, also presenting during the PV Insider webinar.

To address this issue the government plans to give domestic producers support by restricting imports in the second batch of Phase I of the Jawaharlal Nehru National solar Mission. sourcing key supplies from domestic firms has been encouraged

“While the focus within the PV industry is on reducing production costs and enhancing cell efficiencies, Indian companies are not responsible for these breakthroughs.”

12 | IPVEA uPDATE | MARCH 2012

within guidelines for grid connected projects but in Batch II it will be mandatory to include use of solar cells and modules of Indian origin. Import of thin film modules and CPV modules is permitted. speaking at a recent conference, organised by industry body Assocham, India’s minister for new and renewable energy Farooq Abdullah said foreign companies must set up manufacturing facilities along with R&D centres if they want to enter India for solar power generation.

According to Barve, in order to be successful on domestic turf, Indian manufacturers need to develop products the meet criteria for global markets. There should be no difference in quality of output. “Achieving this requires investment in in testing facilities to ensure that products coming off lines are of high quality and good performance and testing modules in different climate conditions to see that components that are made can perform in different parts of the world.”

In a series of questions at the end of the webinar, obtaining financial backing was viewed by the audience as the biggest challenge facing developers currently. Though as Guha pointed out as more project financing for PV occurs then other issues, such as land acquisition and procurement will emerge as bigger challenges.

The next question asked respondents to rate whether cost, technology performance, company track record or module performance is the most important factor for project developers when considering module selection. Most responses rated module performance, followed by cost as most important. The webinar presenters had their own views. Barve suggested: “I would have liked to say all four are equally important. But if you have to give priority, they should be company track record, followed by module performance, technology performance and then cost.”Vineeth Vijayaraghavan, Editor of Panchabuta, commented: “I’m inclined to agree with Amit. start with technology and module first, then company and cost needs to be balanced against project lifecycle, performance and so on.” Guha said: “All four are important but in an era where there are many companies with good performance of modules and acceptable costs and established technology for different applications, module makers are disappearing across the world.

Convincing that the company is going to last the lifetime of the project is the single most important factor.”While the National solar Mission and several state-level solar policies have initiated demand for large-scale PV generation, there is still progress to be made. Emphasis on local content and ensuring India-made modules are of comparable quality as products from other markets should create some opportunities for the equipment segment. However recent controversies such as the investigation into lanco Infratech and its subsidiaries for obtaining fraudulent commissioning certificates for PV plants suggest that ambitious policy must be properly administered to establish confidence in India’s PV market potential.

This article is based

on information from

Spotlight on India PV, a

webinar organised and

hosted by PV Insider and

Panchabuta – Renewable

Energy & Cleantech in

India, local press reports

and Ministry of New and

Renewable Energy

12 | IPVEA uPDATE | MARCH 2012

India’s utility solar market takes shape

ARE YOU IN?

wafer manufacturing. cell

production. module assembly.

microinverters. selective

emitter. yield management.

opV. process control.

automatic bussing. trackers.

turnkey systems. backsheets.

roll coating. remote

monitoring. quality standard

testing. insurance. Design.

whether an investor,

developer, or supplier the

opportunities afforded by solar

are endless. be a part of it.

PVMATRIX

matrix.ipvea.org