(Tienen, Belgium - November 21 2007) - In the presence of Christophe de Margerie, CEO of Total and Gérard Mestrallet, chairman and CEO of GDF SUEZ (through Electrabel), Photovoltech inaugurated its new production line on the 21st November 2007.This expansion involved an investment of €30 million and quadruples the production capacity from 20 MWp to 80 MWp per year.
The official inauguration attracted a lot of attention from both the national and international press and was attended by more than 300 invitees. Taking advantage of the opportunity provided by the event, Photovoltech also announced a further investment of €45 million to increase the total production capacity to 140 MWp by 2009. This additional expansion will create around 60 new jobs.
"Ambitious photovoltaic solar energy plans are critical for the planet”, said Christophe de Margerie. “Photovoltech is one of the pillars on which we intend to build a world-class business across the entire photovoltaic solar energy chain.”
“Renewable energies are a priority for Europe and for GDF SUEZ (through Electrabel)”, commented Gérard Mestrallet. “They will help to respond to the key challenge of the future: delivering reliable, environmentally friendly, competitively-priced energy. Photovoltech’s solar energy expertise is an invaluable asset for our group.”
The strong growth outlook for solar energy in Europe means that Photovoltech can confidently continue to increase its photovoltaic cell production capacity, which is expected to give the company a position in the top 10 of the global market in 2015.
Photovoltech is one of the leading European Photovoltaic cell manufacturers and was founded in 2001 by Total, GDF SUEZ (through Electrabel) and Imec, which today hold respective interests of 47.8%, 47.8% (including Soltech’s stake) and 4.4%.
The cells produced by Photovoltech are based on an innovative technology developed by Imec and are characterized by higher efficiencies as well as superior visual properties. Photovoltech reported a turnover of €40 million in 2006.
