Sencera (Charlotte, North Carolina), manufacturer of thin film silicon based photovoltaic (PV) modules, on March 17th, 2009 announced that it had successfully deposited single-junction silicon solar cells with an initial 8.7 percent sunlight to electricity conversion efficiency under standard test conditions. As a result, the company reports, it had secured the final 5.2 million of a 15.6 million US-Dollar investment from the California based lead investor Quercus Trust. According to the press release, the efficiency gain had been achieved with process and hardware enhancements of Sencera's manufacturing platform "Viper", a proprietary, fully automated plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) system.

Recent innovations on the "Viper" had improved cell absorption of both blue and red light sections of the solar spectrum, which according to the company result in the conversion of more sunlight to solar electricity. "This efficiency milestone validates our manufacturing platform and our cost model. We intend to expand our present 1 MW research capacity to 35 MW annual capacity over the next two quarters", said Dr. Rusty Jewett, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Sencera.

35 MW solar module factory under construction in Charlotte, NC

Sencera reports that it has fully funded the first manufacturing line without incurring debt. Over 75 percent of the production equipment and process required to manufacture solar modules is the company's proprietary design, Sencera emphasizes. "Sencera's capital requirement to build a factory is less than one-half the cost of competitors. As a result, Sencera is positioned well for long term price volatility in the solar module marketplace", said Sencera's Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Britt Weaver. According to the press release, initial company plans include the production of a 106 watt single-junction amorphous silicon module with an efficiency of 7 percent at its 35 megawatt (MW) solar module factory under construction in Charlotte, North Carolina. Future plans include the development of a second generation tandem junction module with a targeted stabilized efficiency of more than 11 percent. According to the press release, this would increase the manufacturing capacity to 50 MW without the purchase of additional equipment. Sencera reports that the solar cell performance had independently been confirmed by The University of Delaware's Institute of Energy Conversion.

2009-03-23 | Courtesy: Sencera | solarserver.com © Heindl Server GmbH