SOLON inaugurates new production facility in Tucson, Arizona

October 17, 2008. SOLON AG's state-of-the-art production facility for solar modules came on stream today in Tucson, Arizona (USA). In its first phase, the production site will have an annual capacity of 60 MWp. It will produce crystalline and thin-film solar modules as well as photovoltaic systems for the North American market. SOLON currently employs around 100 people at its site in Tucson.

SOLON's local presence provides a good basis for breaking into the US solar market. "The solar market in the US is growing rapidly", according to Olaf Koester, president and CEO of SOLON Corporation. "The recent legislation on tax breaks for the construction of solar power systems creates a secure framework for the further expansion of renewable energies in the US and will accelerate their growth. We intend to benefit from this trend, and our new facility will put us in an excellent position to do so."
"We are excited to have SOLON's new state-of-the-art factory in Tucson as well as the associated high skill jobs", Tucson Regional Economic Organization President & CEO Joe Snell said. "We expect SOLON to be a cornerstone of very large solar economic development in Southern Arizona."

About the SOLON Corporation:
SOLON Corporation is a wholly-owned subsidiary of SOLON AG and was established at the beginning of 2007. It manufactures solar modules and turnkey photovoltaic systems for the North American market and has already installed more than 9 MWp of integrated photovoltaic power systems and solar power stations in the US. The aim of SOLON Corp. is to promote the large-scale use of solar power in the USA.

About SOLON AG:
SOLON AG is one of the largest solar module manufacturers in Europe and a leading supplier of photovoltaic systems for large-scale solar power plants. The SOLON Group has subsidiaries in Germany, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, and the U.S. and employs more than 850 people worldwide. The SOLON Group's core business is the manufacture of solar modules in various performance categories and of complete photovoltaic systems for the construction of solar power plants as well as the construction of turn-key solar power plants worldwide.

http://www.solon.com/cw/en/press/detail.html?ID=280