Invest in Germany Spring 2007 Update

Industrial Investment Council (IIC) integration continues

Since I first mentioned the merger of the IIC with Invest in Germany (IiG) in the Christmas Eve Claudia Schiffer post, both organizations completed their merger on January 1, 2007, creating a common web landing page.

Two versions of the newsletter Spring 2007 FAST TRACK News from Germany – Photovoltaics are available for download; the earlier IIC version has a story about Novaled AG and Heliatek GmbH titled New Developments in Top Emitting OLEDs.

An updated Industry Overview: Photovoltaics is also available providing a one page summary of German photovoltaic production and new manufacturing ventures. Alas, the Photovoltaic Tooling overview has not been updated on the IIC website since December 2006.

In the Spring 2007 FAST TRACK newsletter, I learned Nanosolar, Inc. has secured their new solar panel manufacturing site in Luckenwalde, Germany, southwest of Berlin and a 45 minute drive to Schoenefeld Airport where the Berlin Brandenburg International (BBI) airport is being built. This was of personal interest to me because my aunt and cousin live just outside of Luckenwalde. Luckenwalde was part of East Germany and the local economy remains depressed with high unemployment. I can recommend a few good restaurants to the Nanosolar folks if they need some tips!