Mitsubishi to Expand Solar Business

Mitsubishi Electric Corp. announced that it has completed construction of its PV Cell Plant #2, a new photovoltaic (PV) cell production facility at its Nakatsugawa Works Iida Factory in Nagano Prefecture.

By March 2011, the company anticipates that it will raise its annual PV cell and module production capacity by 50 MW to 270 MW, and it plans to ultimately reach an annual capacity of 600 MW at an early stage.

The company’s expansion of production capacity is in response to the sharp increase in global demand for PV systems. The market is expected to grow from 5,500 MW in fiscal 2009 to approximately 8,000 MW in fiscal 2012 based upon the introduction of new PV-related stimulus programs in Japan, feed-in-tariff systems spreading in Europe, as well as projected growth in the North American market.

Adding to its current lineup of polycrystalline silicon PV modules, the company has planned to install new equipment at its factory to manufacture monocrystalline silicon PV cells, and start production by March 2011. Additionally, new production lines will be built to manufacture monocrystalline silicon PV modules at its Nakatsugawa factory.

For more information, visit: www.mitsubishielectric.com