Oct 25 2005
Japanese technology group Kyocera Corporation has increased its manufacturing capacity for solar modules by opening its first European solar production plant in Kadan, a northern town of the Czech Republic. The official opening ceremony for the new Plant took place on October 19. Isao Yukawa, Senior Managing Executive Officer of Kyocera Corporation and Director of Kyocera Solar Energy Division performed the opening ceremony together with Mitsuru Imanaka, President of Kyocera Solar Europe.
The new plant is the company's response to the growing global demand for solar energy. Kyocera has already doubled production capacity worldwide this year.
Production capacity from 24MWP in the first year in Kadan is set to keep abreast of the growing demand in Europe and will rise continuously. "We intend to increase the number of jobs in the long term to help us achieve our objective," said Mitsuru Imanaka.
"Our plant in the Czech Republic will enable us to respond more effectively to the requirements of the European market and to satisfy the demand for environmentally friendly solar energy products. It will also enable us to support on-site sales teams," concluded Imanaka.
The world's second-largest manufacturer of solar cells and modules will supply Germany and other EU countries from the Czech Republic. With a total of four production sites in Japan, China, Mexico and the Czech Republic, Kyocera now disposes over the world's largest company-owned integrated production system. Each step in the production process is performed within the company: from the casting of silicon over the manufacture of environmentally friendly solar cells to the assembly of solar modules.
"With the start of operation at Kadan factory, we have successfully completed our quadripartite global solar production network, and can now react on the spot to the demand of the individual local markets," said Isao Yukawa, and continues: "We in Europe are extremely proud that the Czech factory shall become the Number One solar factory within this quadripartite global network and support environmental preservation in Europe."
The choice of location allows Kyocera to promptly service the four largest solar energy markets in Japan, China, USA, and Europe. A further benefit is the optimization of module development to suit the requirements of each market.
Environmental and economic aspects go hand in hand at Kyocera. The company has been involved in the solar energy market for 30 years, and will continue to expand its activities in the solar sector. Scientists at Kyocera have developed in year-long research a high-performance ceramic which today is seen worldwide as an ecologically very promising material. Ceramic materials enable the manufacture of components and accessories used for environmental applications, such as the harnessing of solar energy.
http://global.kyocera.com