Leading Solar Companies Create Green Jobs in Germany

Nearly 50 percent of the world’s installed solar-energy capacity is in Germany, and annual industry growth is expected to hit 25 percent in coming years. North American investments in eastern Germany have contributed significantly to this success. Mike Ahearn, CEO of First Solar, will present his company’s success story in eastern Germany at a reception on October 14, 2008 at 6:00pm at the Marriott Hotel in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Invest in Germany, the country’s official inward investment promotion agency, is hosting the event.

In a story that Thomas Friedmann’s book Hot, Flat, and Crowded has made famous, First Solar announced in 2006 that it would be making a major investment in eastern Germany. The company now employs 540 individuals in the town of Frankfurt/Oder, at a facility that is the largest thin-film solar factory in the world. First Solar estimates that the increased capacity from the Frankfurt Oder factory has led to an 800 percent increase in production.

Germany’s renewable energy sources act (EEG in German) was one of the country’s major advantages for First Solar. The EEG requires utilities to purchase electricity from the PV-system owner at a rate that is often twice the regular retail price for residential electricity. The price is guaranteed for twenty years, providing investment security.

This law, combined with Germany’s excellence in production and manufacturing, and the presence of leading R&D centers, has contributed to the boom in Germany’s PV market. Industry revenues hit Euro 5.7 billion in 2007. In addition to First Solar, Nanosolar, Signet Solar, Arise (Canada), and other companies have all opened up production facilities in eastern Germany over the last two years.

“The EEG combined with the skills of German employees and the R&D partners in eastern Germany are compelling reasons that North American PV companies are investing in eastern Germany,” notes David Wortmann, Director of Renewable Energies and Resources at Invest in Germany.

At the reception, Mr. Ahearn will be joined by Dr. Engelbert Lutke Daldrup of the German Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Urban Affairs, who will discuss the positive investment framework awaiting investors in eastern Germany. In addition, Nolan Browne, Director of the MIT-Fraunhofer Center for Sustainable Energy Systems, will be at the reception. Fraunhofer is a leading German research institute that works closely with investors, in all industries, in developing product innovations.

Invest in Germany is the inward investment promotion agency of the Federal Republic of Germany. It provides investors with comprehensive support from site selection to the implementation of investment decisions.