From left (seated): Hartung Robert, CEO and Management Board Chairman of Centrothern Photovoltaics AG; Marwan Alghurair, Chairman of the Board of IDEA Polysilicon; and Stenkamp Dirk, COO of Centrotherm Photovoltaic. (Standing) Dr. Basel Abu Sharkh, Consultant to IDEA Polysilicon; Dr. Schneider Helmut, Business Unit Director, Marketing & Sales, Centrotherm-SiTec GmbH; and Dr. Abdul Basit Andijani, Consultant to IDEA Polysilicon. RIYADH – An agreement between IDEA Polysilicon Company (IPC) and Centrotherm Photovoltaic was signed Monday to build the largest facility in the Middle East for the manufacture of high- quality polysilicon and wafers for solar panels. Centrotherm Photovoltaic is the world's leading technology and equipment provider for the photovoltaic industry. Under the agreement, the plant to be build at a cost of SR4 billion in Yanbu Industrial City, will produce "highly-pure polysilicon" with a total capacity of up to 10,000 tons per year, of which 2,500 tons will be converted to solar wafers. The new industrial complex will contribute to the Kingdom's strategic aim of diversifying its non-oil economy and developing the renewable energy sector to provide alternative sources of energy, in addition to providing 1000 local job opportunities in its various facilities. The company also has future plans to expand into the production of solar cells and panels as well as establishing solar power plants. The project will form a nucleus for a solar industry cluster at the industrial city of Yanbu, which is in line with the plans of the Royal Commission and the National Industrial Clusters Development Program. Centrotherm will provide the technical know-how and basic engineering design for IDEA's project. The company has also announced a tender to bid for engineering services and supervision of the project, for which the winning tender will be chosen in the coming weeks. The deal was signed by Marwan Al Ghurair, Chairman of the Board of IDEA Polysilicon, and Dirk Stenkamp, COO of Centrotherm Photovoltaic. Outlining the project, Al Ghurair said "during the past four years the Company has worked with the relevant authorities to provide all the factors that will enable the project to succeed including the allocation of land for the plant, gas, provision of electricity and all other facilities necessary to operate the plant. In addition, we have conducted studies on quality standards and market requirements, as well as the choice of technology in collaboration with engineering companies worldwide." Dr. Basel Abu-Sharkh and Dr. Abdul-Basit Andijani, consultants to IDEA Polysilicon, noted that the most advanced technologies have been selected in order to save on energy and raw materials and lower the capital cost, making the plant a global cost leader that will be very competitive. A memorandum of understanding was also signed to supply all the raw materials required for the project.
