By Allan Maurer

ATLANTA—Suniva has not wasted any time putting the more than $55 million it raised this year to work. The company recently selected a metro Atlanta site for its first facility to make its advanced silicon solar cells. CEO and Chairman John Baumstark says the company expects the plant to be in full production mode by fall.

Baumstark says higher gas prices are increasing the awareness of the need for alternative energy solutions and Suniva’s can help solve both the energy and environmental problems, since solar is clean tech.

Suniva’s technology is based on the work of Ajeet Rohatgi of the Georgia Institute of Technology’s University Center of Excellence in Photovoltaics. One of the reasons the company is locating its first plant in metro Atlanta is to be close to the Georgia Tech campus, says Baumstark. Since it does a lot of international business, it also wanted to be close to the Atlanta airport, he adds.

Suniva brings two advantages to its innovative solar cells, higher efficiency and low cost manufacturing. “That’s what the mass market is looking for, to get the most efficiency possible at the lowest manufacturing cost,” says Baumstark.

Suniva’s solar cells capture more of the sun’s energy and achieves efficiencies of 18 percent, which it may take up to 20 percent, at relatively low manufacturing cost.

“The Holy Grail would be to achieve parity with coal-fired power,” says Baumstark.

Although silicon has had supply problems recently, driving up the price, Baumstark says is because not enough silicon processing plants exist. “Processing plants are capital intensive,” he says, “but 160 to 180 new plants have been announced worldwide, so significantly more supply will be coming to market over the next few years and bring the cost down.”

Suniva expects to hire up to 100 people for its new facility and may expand it. Plans are for it to have an initial capacity of 32 megawatts on its first line of cells. The company expects to scale up to 100 megawatts over the next two years.

Suniva makes just the solar cells. “We’re like the Intel chip in PCs,” says Baumstark. “We don’t do the rest of the components.”

Baumstark says the tech may be green but the future looks rosy. “Forecasts say solar will grow by 50 percent a year and I don’t know many industries growing at that rate.”

He notes that the company has not made any decisions about raising additional capital. Its backers include New Enterprise Associates and Advanced Equities.

The Technology Association of Georgia recently recognized Suniva as one of the state’s Top 10 Innovative Technology Companies. Suniva is also one of TechJournal South’s 2008 Tech 50 companies and presented at the Second Annual Southeast Venture Conference this year.

On the Web: www.suniva.com

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