SunPower inaugurates solar wafer plant today

SunPower Philippines Manufacturing Limited inaugurates today its $300-million solar wafer manufacturing plant inside the Laguna Technopark in Biñan, Laguna.

President Arroyo, Energy Secretary Vicente S. Perez, Trade Secretary Cesar V. Purisima together with the high officials of SunPower Corp. TJ Rodgers, chairman; Thomas Werner, chief executive officer; Minh Pham, vice-president for worldwide manufacturing; and Gregory Reichow, SunPower Philippines plant manager, will lead the inauguration rites.

"The $300-million facility, the first of its kind in Asia, brings the Philippines at par with other countries because this plant will produce the world’s highest-performance silicon solar cells," Perez said, noting that it is expected to supply six percent of the world’s total available market for photovoltaic (PV) industry.

As part of the renewable Energy Policy Framework the DOE launched last May 2003, a 10-year goal was to make the Philippines into a regional export hub for solar power technology.

The first high-tech wafer fab will initially produce some eight million wafers annually or equivalent to 25 megawatts of solar-powered electricity at 3.1 watts per wafer. Production is expected to increase to 48 million wafers by 2007 or equivalent to 150 megawatts of solar electricity.

The wafer manufacturing plant will produce high efficiency solar cells which are the raw materials needed to assemble solar panels or solar modules. Solar panels, on the other hand, are major components of solar home systems that are usually installed in off grid areas for electrification. Solar panels are also used for refrigeration purposes and streetlights, among others.

Out of 4,197 barangays yet to be energized in the country as of Dec. 2003 it is anticipated that 944 remote barangays will require off-grid solar power systems.

Perez said the construction of a solar manufacturing plant will boost the development of the country’s local solar energy market. He pointed out that discussions are ongoing to offer discount price to the local market for rural electrification.