Photowatt, a subsidiary of EDF Energies Nouvelles established in France, a European company specializing in the manufacturing of photovoltaic cells and modules, today announces a development project which would be based on a new industrial model on the one hand and the deployment of its activities research and development (R&D) on the other hand.
As part of the new industrial model project, Photowatt has started discussions with two of its historic industrial partners: Canadian Solar Inc. (CSI), one of the world leaders in the manufacturing of solar panels and ECM Greentech, a Grenoble-based company which developed an innovative silicon crystallization technology with the National Institute of Solar Energy (INES).
This project consists of the creation of a new company specializing in the low-carbon production of high-tech silicon ingots and wafers. The new company called “Photowatt Crystal Advanced” would be owned 60% by EDF Energies Nouvelles via Photowatt, 30% by CSI and 10 % by ECM Greentech.
Photowatt's expertise, ECM Greentech's technology as well as CSI's industrial capacity and global presence across the entire photovoltaic energy value chain would enable this new structure to seize market opportunities solar energy growing strongly both in France and around the world. Its production capacity would be gradually increased to more than 500 MWp per year compared to 50 MWp today on the historic Photowatt site, in Bourgoin-Jallieu (38) in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region.
The “wafers”, produced with a low carbon footprint, would be marketed in particular in the form of photovoltaic modules as part of the calls for tenders launched by the French Government in its Multiannual Energy Program (PPE) aimed at deploying order of 2.5 GWp per year of photovoltaic projects. The EDF Group, via its subsidiary EDF Energies Nouvelles, also launched the Solar Plan on December 11, 2017, which aims to develop and build, between 2020 and 2035, 30 GWp of photovoltaic solar projects in France, in addition to its other renewable activities. This plan would constitute, in a competitive context, potential opportunities for Photowatt Crystal Advanced.
Furthermore and in conjunction with this joint venture project, Photowatt, with its current facilities and its capacity to develop new processes, would focus on its research and development activities, renamed Photowatt Lab, in connection with the R&D of the EDF Group. and research centers such as INES or the Photovoltaic Institute of Ile de France (IPVF). The objective is to encourage the emergence of new technological solutions in terms of photovoltaic cells and modules and to test them in pre-industrial conditions.
This project is part of the EDF Group's desire to act in favor of the development of renewable energies in accordance with its CAP 2030 corporate strategy.
From today, Photowatt is engaging with its social partners in an information-consultation process relating to the new industrial development and innovation project in which each employee would be offered a position. The project is also subject to approval by the competent competition authorities.
About Photowatt
Photowatt has been a pioneer in the solar industry for almost 40 years. The company designs and produces photovoltaic modules based on crystalline silicon technology, for different types of applications, from residential equipment to ground-mounted power plants. Photowatt is a subsidiary of EDF Energies Nouvelles.
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