World PV Leaders to Gather in Milan

World PV Leaders to Gather in Milan

September 03, 2007

    MILAN, Italy, Sept. 3 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- Worldwide
leaders in the PV industry will be gathering in Milan,
Italy from September 3rd-7th, 2007 for the 22nd annual
European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference. In recent
years, Germany has become a popular destination for PV
investments and the country's investment promotion agency,
Invest in Germany, will be on hand in Milan to outline
advantages of a PV investment in Germany. 

    Germany is the world leader in PV. This claim is backed
up in both capacity and sales: 55% of the world's total PV
capacity is in Germany and in 2006 the German PV industry
earned 3.8 billion euros in sales.  

    There are many reasons that Germany is the leading PV
investment location. One is the favorable legal framework.
The Renewable Energies Act of 2000 sets a
"feed-in-tariff" at which power companies are
required to purchase energy from renewable sources. For PV
power this equates to a price of 37.96 to 54.21 euros/kWh
paid to the owners of PV installations over 20 years. This
price incentive has helped spawn a market of consumers for
PV products. 

    Germany also has a qualified workforce that is ready to
help any PV investment succeed. The proximity to other PV
companies, suppliers, universities, and research institutes
has attracted numerous foreign PV investors. For example,
the Canadian solar cell manufacturer ARISE is breaking
ground this month on its new production line facility in
the eastern German town of Bischofswerda. ARISE is joining
other companies such as First Solar and Nanosolar in making
major investments in eastern Germany. 

    Furthermore many German universities are strengthening
the research landscape and future workforce by offering
programs in management and engineering focused on the PV
industry. 

    The availability of investment incentives is also a
further reason for companies to invest in Germany. These
loans and grants -- that sometimes cut investment costs in
half -- serve as a major attraction for investors to set up
projects especially in eastern Germany. This incentive,
coupled with the previously listed reasons, has helped
create a "solar valley" of PV companies
throughout eastern Germany. 

    Invest in Germany is the official investment promotion
agency of Germany. Its mandate is to assist and advise
international companies about investment opportunities in
Germany. Invest in Germany can be found in Exhibition Hall
20, Booth F6. 


    For more information, please contact:

     Eva Henkel 
     Invest in Germany
     Tel:   [phone]
     Fax:   [phone]
     Email: [e-mail]
     Web:   http://www.invest-in-germany.com