Soitec of Bernin, France, which makes engineered substrates including silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafers (as well as III-V epiwafers through its Picogiga International division), and Saudi Arabian investment company Khaled Juffali Company (KJC) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU). Under the MOU, the two companies will create a joint venture to market and sell concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) systems in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Soitec will provide the technical and commercial solar expertise, while KJC will facilitate access to key local and regional stakeholders and share its long track record in managing international joint ventures.
Soitec’s CPV technology, which uses triple-junction cells mounted on a glass plate, achieves at least twice the performance of conventional photovoltaic technologies, making it the most cost-efficient solution for high-volume power generation in regions with high direct normal irradiation (DNI), says the firm.
The KJC-Soitec MOU is in line with the ongoing thrust of Saudi Arabia to explore and tap into renewable energy sources, as shown by the white paper recently published by the King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (K.A.CARE) which outlines the competitive procurement process for solar, wind, geothermal and waste to energy projects in Saudi Arabia.
“Soitec holds a leading position in the CPV industry with a pipeline of projects totaling hundreds of megawatts in the USA and South Africa and operates in 14 countries around the world, including a demonstration system at the Medina College of Technology (MCT) in Saudi Arabia,” said KJC’s founder & chairman Sheik Khaled Juffali. “Soitec has already demonstrated its ability to industrialize disruptive innovations with high-quality standards,” he adds. “Thanks to Soitec’s leading CPV technology, our partnership will have a true competitive advantage and help to realize the Kingdom’s high solar potential. CPV is indeed perfectly suited for countries which benefit, like Saudi Arabia, from intensive solar radiation.”
“KJC is an excellent partner in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with an extensive track record creating multinational partnerships that gain a strong position in the Kingdom,” says Gaetan Borgers, executive VP of Soitec’s Solar Division. “KJC’s profile perfectly matches our need for a high-level Saudi partner with an in-depth understanding of how to build a long-term sustainable business in this very important country for us,” he adds. “Solar energy will play a key role in meeting Saudi Arabia’s increasing electricity demand and thanks to KJC, we hope to establish CPV as a key solution to this challenge.”
