Evonik plans Netherlands solar silicon plant

20 September 2007 11:01  [Source: ICIS news]

LONDON (ICIS news)--Evonik Industries plans to build a 3,750 tonne/year solar silicon plant at Geleen in the Netherlands, the company said on Thursday.

 

Evonik, the parent company of German chemicals producer Degussa said the project was a joint venture with the Dutch company, The Silicon Mine (TSM) and would represent 5% of the world’s solar silicon market volume forecast for 2010.

 

“We see solar silicon as a large market with growth over the next few years. In the mid-term, we aim to take hundreds of millions of euros in order to expand our good position massively in this attractive market,” said head of Evonik’s chemicals division Klaus Engel.

 

Evonik said it would produce the raw material chlorosilanes at the site, which would then be converted by TSM into solar silicon for solar power applications.

 

The project would create 400 jobs at the Geleen site which would have provisions to expend the plant's capacity to 14,000 tonnes/year.

 

In April, Evonik signed a deal with Silicium de Provence (Silpro) for a similar integrated 4,000 tonne/year plant in France.

By: Mark Watts
+44 20 8652 3214

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