Sol3g produces 1000th High Concentration PhotoVoltaic M40 Module “grid”

Nearing 500 kWp (kiloWatt-peak) cumulative production?

Friday, August 8, 2008, Sol3g, S.L. released “Sol3g produces its number 1000 grid” which should be up on the News (Español) section of their website soon. Sol3g states they completed their number 1000 (one-thousand) M40 Module grid from their factory in Terrassa (Barcelona) Spain (please see Sol3g inaugurates High Concentration PhotoVoltaics factory) back on July 15, 2008. Each M40 Module grid consists of fourteen (14) M40 Modules.

Photo Credit: Sol3g, S.L.

Now on the specification side, the Sol3g press release claims a single M40 Module has:

An efficiency up to 24% and 35 W of power can be achieved under standard conditions: 1000 W/m² direct normal irradiance and 25ºC cell temperature.

Using the standard High Concentration PhotoVoltaic (HCPV) test conditions, the M40 Module Product Data Sheet specifies 30W (Watt) Power @850W/m² (Watts per meter squared) DNI (Direct Normal Irradiance) for a Class A binned module. Using the 30W module power figure and assuming all modules are Class A:

(30W) (1000 M40 Module grids) (14 M40 Modules) = 420 kWp cumulative production

versus the 490 kWp cumulative production result with the 35W Power @1000W/m².

It is clear the Flix Solar deal (please see Sol3g lands 800kW High Concentration PhotoVoltaic deal with Flix Solar) used the 30W power specification when ordering their required 26,880 M40 Modules. I expect the Sol3g Terrassa factory will be humming in August 2008 completing the balance of M40 Modules required for the Flix deployment which was slated for completion by the end of that month. Then Sol3g will still need to produce modules for the 400 KW installation awarded to Sol3g by ISFOC in Castilla La Mancha or please see ISFOC Awards 1.3MW of Concentrator PhotoVoltaic power plants.

Regarding future production capacity, Sol3g said:

The future plans of the company are to increase the production capacity up to 10 Mw/year for the end of 2008 and to maintain an intense work of investigation and development to continue leading the world-wide market of HCPV systems.

While this is consistent with the announced plans of Sol3g, Sol3g said:

The Flix project will be the largest task carried out by Sol3g since its beginnings in 2004. Alter (After) the factory opened, last January, Sol3g has increased its production capacity, and by the end of 2008 the company expects to increase this to 3MWp.

back in May 2008 with Sol3g lands 800kW High Concentration PhotoVoltaic deal with Flix Solar. I will seek to clarify this aberrational point with Sol3g.

So what is the deal with Solar Power 2008 renaming itself Solar Power International? Per Solar Power Conference and Expo, Reflecting Global Scope and Growth, Becomes Solar Power International, Rhone Resch, president of SEIA said:

As the U.S. solar energy industry has grown, this conference has become an essential event for global solar energy companies that want to do business in the thriving U.S. market. The strong influx of international attendees is an indication of America’s potential to attract investment, create more green-collar jobs and regain our leadership position.

Whatever this rose may be called, this is a regional conference event for national and international companies focused on penetrating and growing solar markets in the United States.

Sol3g lands 800kW High Concentration PhotoVoltaic deal with Flix Solar

Installation scheduled for August 2008 completion.

In Sol3g signs an agreement for building an 800kW installation in Flix (Español), Sol3g, S.L. announced an agreement with Flix Solar, S.L., part of grupo Finances Personals, for an 800kWp (kilowatt-peak) High Concentration PhotoVoltaic (HCPV) installation.

Project developer Flix Solar has ordered 26,880 M40 Modules for integration with FEiNA SCP SC16 two-axis trackers at the Solar Park Ramón Escriche in Flix (Tarragona) Spain. The Solar Park Ramón Escriche has a system capacity of 8MW today on an area of 40 hectares (~98.8 acres) and is undergoing an expansion to 12MW. MPbata has performed project management for the solar park. For local Flix Blogs coverage in Spanish on the existing solar park, please see Flix posa en marxa el parc solar més gran de Catalunya and PARC SOLAR "RAMON ESCRICHE".

The Flix Solar deal is the largest project to date for Sol3g since it was founded in 2004. Sol3g now expects to increase production capacity to only 3MWp (MegaWatt-peak) by year end 2008 versus the five (5) MWp indicated in Sol3g inaugurates High Concentration PhotoVoltaics factory.

I believe the Sol3g claim this is the “largest worldwide installation based on triple-junction cells” will be true if the project is completed by August 2008.

Sol3g inaugurates High Concentration PhotoVoltaics factory

New 5 MWp factory in Terrassa (Barcelona) Spain
8 kWp pilot plant installed at Enel in Catania (Sicily) Italy

Sol3g, S.L. today announced the inauguration of their new 800 square meter (8611 square feet) production plant with an annual capacity of five (5) MWp (MegaWatt-peak). The factory will produce HCPV (High Concentration PhotoVoltaic) M40 Modules. Here is the M40 Datasheet (Español).

Employing up to 80 workers, Sol3g could increase production capacity to 10 MWp by year end 2008. Sol3g also claims to have developed a model factory and production process with Terrassa that can be duplicated on an international basis to address local demand.

Here is the pair of press releases: Sol3g inaugurates a new factory in Terrassa and Pilot installation for Enel in Sicily.

Sol3g’s original plan was to ramp production in the first half of 2007 per Sol3g talks M40 HCPV Solar Modules and Systems at Intersolar. In the supporting materials, Sol3g also said:

Besides, Sol3g plans to install over 800 kW in several significant projects, among which include 400 kW awarded by ISFOC (Instituto de Sistemas Fotovoltaicos de Concentración) in Castilla La Mancha.

In November 2007, Sol3g installed the first of two HCPV pilot plant systems for Enel S.p.A. (BIT:ENEL) in Catania, Italy. This was Sol3g’s first deployment using terrestrial III-V Triple Junction solar cells which I presume were supplied by AZUR SPACE Solar Power GmbH. Please see Sol3g secures Triple Junction Solar Cells from Azur Space for further details.

Sol3g worked with Italian partner company SGS Future to install the M40 modules on a FEiNA SCP SC16 two-axis tracker.

Per this Enel strategy for zero emission power generation presentation (see slides 20-23) from the Embassy of Italy in Budapest website, Enel is evaluating two HCPV prototypes from Sol3g and perhaps Sharp at their Catania PV laboratories and the following solar technologies:

150kW Si-based concentrating technology
420kW Multi-junction concentrating technology
300 kW Flat modules on tracking system

at their Adrano PV demonstration site located near Catania.

The Enel presentation also discusses The Archimede project (slides 16-19). This is an innovative solar thermodynamic plant with net power of 4.7 MWe (Megawatt electric) to be built in Priolo Gargallo near Siracusa (Syracuse), Italy, next to and integrated with an existing Natural Gas Combined Cycle (NGCC) plant.

Enel details the reasons they selected this particular site for The Archimede project unlike some companies.

ISFOC Awards 1.3MW of Concentrator PhotoVoltaic power plants

Concentración Solar La Mancha S.L., EMCORE Corp., Arima Eco, and Sol3g submitted the winning bids.

The ISFOC, Instituto de Sistemas Fotovoltaicos de Concentración S.A. or Institute of Concentration Photovoltaics Systems, Board of Directors awarded the 13 Concentrator PhotoVoltaic (CPV) pilot power plants at their last meeting. These awards complete the tender for the second phase of ISFOC’s 3MW (MegaWatt) CPV pilot plant program detailed in the previous post, ISFOC 1.3MW CPV Power Plant tenders made public. The terse ISFOC announcement is here.

Including two (2) Spanish firms, here are the 1.3MW award details:

Concentración Solar La Mancha S.L. (ES)	300kW
EMCORE Corp. (US)	300kW
Arima Eco (Taiwan)	300kW
Sol3g (ES)	400kW

The unsuccessful bidders included: Menova Energy (Canada), GreenVolts (US), Electricidad Alsanbo S.L. (ES), Infopyme Solar (ES), and SolFocus (US). The failure of the GreenVolts bid for a 200kW (kiloWatt) pilot power plant is notable. Perhaps the capacity was too small and the price per kilowatt was too high? SolFocus was awarded 500kW of CPV pilot power plants in the first phase.

Thanks to the folks at Sol3g, S.L. for bringing this ISFOC award to my attention. Earlier this month, Sol3g joined ASIF (http://www.asif.org/), Asociación de la Industria Fotovoltaica or Spanish Photovoltaic Industry Association, per the press release Sol3g becomes member of Asif.

Solar Light Flashes: October 22, 2007

Select Photovoltaic News Tidbits

Once again, conferences including Solar Power 2007 and 22nd European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition (EU PVSEC) have dominated Blog coverage since September. I have accumulated anecdotes and news about Blog staples and newer companies and topics over this time period.

Advent Solar, Inc.
During Solar Power 2007, I talked to an Advent Solar spokesperson at their Hyatt Regency Ballroom stand. The spokesperson claimed the retooling of Advent’s 25MWp (MegaWatt-peak) line to 156mm (millimeter) silicon wafers would be completed by about November 2007 and ready for production in early 2008. The expectation is laid off workers will be recalled to ramp production on the retooled line.

In contrast, before Solar Power 2007, my request for a reiterative quote from the Advent Solar Management Team about the retooling to dispel anonymous rumors of process issues with Advent’s Emitter Wrap-Through (EWT) solar cells was denied. My subsequent request to meet a member of the Advent Solar Executive Management Team at Solar Power 2007 was also denied. I may be a niche Blogger, but I don’t seem to have trouble getting to talk with Photovoltaic company CEOs. Could there be some shred of truth behind this rumor?

Blue Square Energy
After seeing my post, Select Videos from the 22nd EU PVSEC, Joe Babin from Blue Square Energy (BSE) wanted to clarify Dr. Allen Barnett’s relationship with the company. Dr. Allen Barnett sits on the Board of Directors and has a technology consulting contract with BSE. BSE President and CEO Jeffrey Barnett will present this week at VentureWire’s Alternative Energy Innovations Conference.

ersol Thin Film
I noticed ersol Solar Energy AG (FRA:ES6) CEO Dr. Claus Beneking at the ersol Solar Power 2007 stand. Dr. Beneking was willing to answer a few questions about the recent developments at ersol Thin Film. He confirmed the basic facts I got from ersol reported in Oerlikon solar (almost) at work: ersol Thin Film delays production. ersol Thin Film plans to solidify their production toolset before further expansions to or by 100MWp in the 2009/2010 timeframe. ersol Thin Film expects to be the first company in production with micromorph tandem modules by adding Oerlikon’s KAI 1200^M2 deposition system to their existing production line.

GreenVolts Inc.
GreenVolts has been expanding the management team by hiring Joseph “Chip” Krauskopf as Chief Operating Officer, Stephen Smith as Director of Project Operations, Shaun Ferguson as Vice President of Global Supply Chain, and Craig Lewis as Vice President of Government Relations. Of most interest, Mr. Smith defected from SolFocus where he was the Director of Field Operations leading the ISFOC installations. Please see GreenVolts Continues Momentum With Addition Of Technology And Solar Power Veterans and GreenVolts Positions For Worldwide Expansion With Addition Of Experienced Executives for the respective press releases.

GreenVolts will also present at VentureWire’s Alternative Energy Innovations 2007 and again at the 20th NREL Industry Growth Forum.

Inside Greentech
Since Inside Greentech (was) acquired by the Cleantech Network™, LLC to become Cleantech.com, the online publication seems to have lost its charm and gone corporate. Even The Greentech Avenger has renamed himself The Cleantech Avenger. I can’t imagine Spiderman going with a name change.

M.SETEK Co.,Ltd.
M.SETEK President Ritsuo Matsumiya delivers an Opening Ceremony speech in Japanese (with English subtitles, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4X0RI-eQF7U) on May 24, 2007, at their Polysilicon Plant located in Soma City, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan.

Sol3g, S.L.
In a press release titled SOLÚCAR TRUSTS IN SOL3G from September 13, 2007, Sol3g announced Solúcar Energia, S.A. obtained a 25% stake in Sol3g by contributing 50% of the capital in a follow on financing round. The balance of the funding is a participative credit from ENISA, a government capital investment arm part of the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism. The proceeds will be used to execute Sol3g’s business plan and complete the production capacity expansion to 5MWp by the end of 2007. The exact Euro sums of these investments were not disclosed.

As an Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) supporter, I appreciated this post, Bloggers should be allowed to join the journalist party, by Don Reisinger on his CNET The Digital Home Blog.

Speaking of Blogs, Madan’s Blog asks the question, Solar Energy - Heat or Hype?

ISFOC 1.3MW CPV Power Plant tenders made public

GreenVolts, Sol3g, and SolFocus among the Concentrator PhotoVoltaic power plant bidders

Back on September 10, 2007, ISFOC, Instituto de Sistemas Fotovoltaicos de Concentración S.A. or Institute of Concentration Photovoltaics Systems, disclosed the companies and their bids for the installation of 1.3MW (Mega-Watts) of CPV (Concentrator PhotoVoltaic) pilot power plants in Call for tenders. These plants will be installed as part of the infrastructure of ISFOC in Castilla La Mancha – Spain as a national and international reference in the concentration photovoltaics field.

COMPANY NAME / EMPRESA	POWER / POTENCIA (kW)	PRICE / PRECIO (€/kW)	MAINTENANCE / MANTENIMIENTO (€/100kW)
Concentración Solar La Mancha S.L. (ES)	300	6000	8000
EMCORE Corp. (US)	400	5960	7750
Menova Energy (Canada)	400	6000	8000
Arima Eco (Taiwan)	400	5998	8000
Greenvolts (US)	200	6000	8000
Electricidad Alsanbo S.L. (ES)	-	6000	7500
Infopyme Solar (ES)	-	5950	7800
Solfocus (US)	200	5850	8000
Sol3G (ES)	400	5980	7900

The final selection process is slated for completion by the first week of November 2007, and the successful bidders will install their pilot plants in 2008 per the requirements articulated in the call for tenders.

This 1.3MW tender is the second phase of a 3MW CPV pilot plant program. The first 1.7MW phase of CPV pilot plants have been awarded to Isofoton (700kW), SolFocus (500kW), and Concentrix (500kW). Installation of these is underway and should be operational in the first half of 2008. 800kW of this capacity will be installed near ISFOC in Puertollano, Castilla La Mancha – Spain: SolFocus and Concentrix with 200kW each and Isofoton with 400kW. The balance of the pilot plants from the first phase are single company pilot plants located in rural areas of Castilla La Mancha each with differing microclimates and solar radiation.

Isofoton will install 300kW in Talavera de la Reina near Toledo, and SolFocus will install 300kW in Almoguera near Guadalajara, the coldest area in Castilla La Mancha. Meanwhile, Concentrix is installing 300kW in Sotos, located north of Cuenca.

One reference on the ISFOC website appears to show participation by GUASCOR FOTON in the first phase, but this is not in the ISFOC paper or poster cited below.

ISFOC was started by a Government of Castilla La Mancha initiative commissioning the Institute of Solar Energy - UPM (Universidad Politécnica de Madrid) to develop a CPV R&D plan. Professors Antonio Luque and Gabriel Sala formulated the plans for the implementation of ISFOC and the Scientific International Committee (SIC) supervising the technical management.

Spain’s national Ministry of Education funded ISFOC’s first phase with €20 Million covering infrastructure, personnel, and a new headquarters and lab facility.

Here are two quotes about ISFOC’s main objective and goal from the Flash enabled and unlinkable website:

ISFOC’s main objective is to promote CPV Systems implementation, helping so its industrialization and commercialization. Companies are invited to joint efforts towards the acceleration of development and starting up of concentration plants, and ISFOC will deliver technical reports on their operation.

One of ISFOC’s main goals is to generate international R&D projects on CPV installations.

For reference, here is the Visual (Poster) Presentation and paper with further detail on the formation and governance of ISFOC from the 22nd EU PVSEC.

VISUAL PRESENTATIONS 1DV.3
Solar Cells, Modules and PV Systems for Space Applications
Terrestrial Concentrator Systems
1DV.3.47 F. Rubio & P. Banda
ISFOC, Ciudad Real, Spain
Establishment of the Institute of Concentration Photovoltaics Systems - ISFOC

Given this is La Mancha, I refuse to make veiled references to Don Quixote tilting at two-axis CPV trackers.

Sol3g secures Triple Junction Solar Cells from Azur Space

Almost 8 million III-V Triple Junction Solar Cells!

On July 25, 2007, Sol3g, S.L. and AZUR SPACE Solar Power GmbH entered into a supply agreement for 44,000 wafers of III-V Triple Junction solar cells over the next three (3) years. The 44,000 wafers represent the equivalent of about 8 million cells or 30MWp (MegaWatt-peak) of HCPV (High Concentration PhotoVoltaic) solar modules. Each wafer is 10cm (centimeters) in diameter with 178 cells per wafer.

Please see Sol3g and Azur Space sign a contract for the supply of triple-junction concentration cells for the official press release.

Sol3g states this supply agreement will cover their HCPV solar module production for the next three years. Since Sol3g is now ramping 5MWp per year of annual production capacity, this agreement confirms Sol3g’s plans to more than double this production capacity over the next three years.

This photo supplied by Sol3g shows Dr. Klaus-Dieter Rasch (left), Managing Director of Azur Space, and Ricard Pardell (right), Managing Director of Sol3g, sealing the deal with a ceremonial handshake.

At first, solar cells designed for space applications are being supplied with 32% efficiency at 380 suns. Azur is in the process of optimizing the solar cell device structure for operation in terrestrial applications with Air Mass 1.5 Direct (AM1.5D) solar spectral irradiance. With these optimizations, Azur expects to increase the average production solar cell efficiency to 35% in 2007 and 37% in 2008 both at 380 suns.

Sol3g joins SolFocus (SolFocus deal with Boeing (Spectrolab) ) and Solar Systems Pty Ltd (Solar Systems and Boeing enter Agreement) in announcing significant supply deals for III-V Triple Junction Solar Cells for HCPV solar applications although both of these deals were with efficiency leader Spectrolab, a Boeing company. Concentrix Solar has yet to announce a supply deal with long time partner Azur Space.

In related news, SolFocus has moved out of the PARC palace and located their new headquarters offices in Mountain View, California USA.

Solar Light Flashes: July 22, 2007

Select Photovoltaic News Tidbits

Intersolar 2007 and 2006 California Clean Tech Open (CCTO) companies have dominated Blog coverage over the past month. It’s time to get back to covering staple companies and topics although there are follow up Intersolar 2007 and PV Industry Forum 2007 posts plus SEMICON West coverage in the works.

Applied Materials:
Applied Materials Names Chris Eberspacher to Lead Advanced Solar Research and Development lends support to the notion that things may not be so rosy at Nanosolar. Dr. Eberspacher left Nanosolar just over one month ago.

Blue Square Energy (BSE):
Alan Swanson Joins Blue Square Energy as Vice President of Manufacturing Operations bringing thirty years of experience from Tyco Electronics and the former AMP, Inc. To complete the management team in preparation for a potential IPO, BSE needs to name a VP of Engineering or CTO or both.

CMC Magnetics Corp:
Following the Moser Baer model, CMC Magnetics, the largest Taiwanese maker of optical media, is setting up a subsidiary, Sun Well Technology, to produce thin film solar modules in Taiwan. Information from industry sources (rumors) allege the 100MWp facility will be equipped by Oerlikon Solar.

Cool Earth Solar:
I stumbled on this video animation titled Inflatable Solar Collectors on YouTube. I don’t know the origin of the animation, but this appears genuine.

HyCore:
Norsk Hydro ASA (NYSE:NHY) and the Umicore Group (EBR:UMI) have formed the HyCore joint venture to produce solar grade silicon from metallurgical silicon using a process first researched by Umicore. €26 million will be invested to construct a 20 metric ton pilot plant at Herøya, in Porsgrunn, Norway, by 2008. If proven successful, a larger facility will be constructed at the same site to produce industrial scale volumes by 2010.

Umicore has about 90% market share in Germanium (Ge) substrate wafers required for compound semiconductors like III-V Triple Junction solar cells used in High Concentration Photovoltaic systems.

NJCEP:
Updated CORE Queues every two weeks now? CORE Queue > 10kw July 13, 2007 (greater than 10kW), CORE Queue <= 10kw July 13, 2007 (less than or equal to 10kW), Public Non K-12 Schools CORE Queue July 13, 2007, and Public K-12 Schools CORE Queue July 13, 2007 are available. An Updated 2007 CORE Budget July 13, 2007 shows the under funded status details of the main CORE Queues, and the Comment Summary: New Jersey Renewable Energy Solar Market Transition Straw Proposal has a number of company and policy centric comments and counter proposals.

A fresh new look for the NJCEP website is due by August 1, 2007.

Oerlikon Solar:
I heard Oerlikon Solar was briefing press (though not this blogger!) about a significant announcement. I have no idea what it is, but speculations include ersol or Schott in official production, more new orders like CMC Magnetics, or could Micromorph tools be shipping?

Solar Newsletter No. 2, July 17, 2007, was distributed at SEMICON West but is not yet on the Oerlikon Solar website at post time.

PV Cycle:
Per the EPIA (European Photovoltaic Industry Association) Newsletter, SOLARIS, the PV CYCLE association created on 5th July 2007 by founding members: Avancis, BSW, Conergy, EPIA, Isofotón, Schott Solar, SolarWorld, and Sulfurcell. An executive board was appointed to prepare for the first General Assembly meeting of the PV Cycle association scheduled for September 18, 2007, in Brussels, Belgium. Interested companies are welcome to apply for membership in the PV CYCLE association and membership information should be forthcoming to EPIA members.

Sol3g, S.L.:
In Sol3g makes a 1 kWp pilot installation financed by Solúcar, an Abengoa subsidiary, the company announced an agreement with Solúcar Energia, S.A., for a 1kWp (kilowatt-peak) HCPV (High Concentration PhotoVoltaic) system pilot installation. Another 20kWp of HCPV modules (M40?) will be supplied for mounting on Solúcar’s own two-axis tracker. Both of these systems will be located in the Solar Platform of Sanlúcar la Mayor, Sevilla, Spain.

SunPower:
And SunPower CEO Tom Werner Named Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2007 Award Recipient in Northern California would not be my first choice since I believe the PowerLight acquisition is an expensive distraction from increasing SunPower’s production of the highest efficiency, back contact, monocrystalline solar cells and modules. Why was Ernst & Young LLP not disclosed as being the independent auditor of PowerLight Corporation’s financials from 2005 and 2006? Although the award claims to use a panel of independent judges, how were the initial nominations made?

The SPR-315 datasheet is now online at the SunPower website.

Given the accelerated velocity of photovoltaic and solar activity, I don’t envy publications trying to cover every aspect of the PV Industry. I’ll stick with this Blog’s established format of looking for areas less covered or where I can add insight and commentary.

Sol3g talks M40 HCPV Solar Modules and Systems at Intersolar

[Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany]

Increasing production capacity to 5MWp (MegaWatt-peak) in 2007

Sol3g, S.L., headquartered in Cerdanyola, SPAIN, was marketing their M40 HCPV (High Concentration PhotoVoltaic) solar modules along with complete HCPV systems and pilot installations per Sol3g Participates in Intersolar 2007.

The M40 HCPV module (Data Sheet) uses a dual optic system to concentrate sunlight with a Fresnel lens onto a secondary non-imaging optic and then a III-V Triple Junction Terrestrial Solar Cell. This design provides optical concentration equivalent to 380 suns.

Each module is a linear array of ten (10) cells, and the solar cells are mounted on receiver substrates with mechanical connectors for series connection and the secondary optic is glued on top of the cell. Please see my grainy, haphazard photo taken from the side of the module for the unclear assembly. A way detailed 36 page technical proposal, Technical Memory, is available for download from the Sol3g website. I suggest getting a copy of this before Sol3g realizes this should be treated as company confidential information.

Sol3g sells complete 1kWp (kiloWatt-peak) and 4kWp HCPV systems with M40 modules bundled with trackers from partner FEiNA SCP. At standard test conditions, the S1000 delivers 1kWp of power mating two arrays of fourteen (14) M40 modules with the FEiNA SC4 tracker. The S4000 delivers 4kWp of power mating four arrays of twenty eight (28) M40 modules with the FEiNA SC16 tracker. Sol3g also sells M40 modules for integration with a customer’s tracker. For this purpose, M40 modules require a 2 axis solar tracker with a precision of +/-0,5°.

Sol3g has pilot installations totaling 4kWp located in Denmark (Braestrup) and Spain (Mont-Ras, Gerona, Cerdanyola del Vallés, Barcelona, and Sevilla). Another 35kWp of pilot installations are reported to be in process for Spain and Europe.

Although Sol3g said:

The company plans for year 2007 aim at increasing its production capacity up to 5MWp / year during the first two quarters of the year…

I hear there is a slight delay with the ramp, but the new production capacity should be in place very soon. To produce 5MWp of M40 modules per year, Sol3g will need to source as many as 156,250 III-V Solar Cells from AZUR SPACE Solar Power GmbH. Prior to the production expansion, Sol3g had capacity of about 50kWp per year beginning production in summer 2006. See the figure below for Sol3g's module cost roadmap through 2009 for the M40 modules.

And thanks to Rob Day at Cleantech Investing (http://cleantechvc.blogspot.com/) for a bunch of recent links to GUNTHER Portfolio including Recurrent Energy, EPV and other news.