Jun 16, 2011
Move in the Right Direction for Green Job Creation
(Reuters) – U.S. solar company Calisolar Inc. received a conditional commitment for a $275 million federal loan guarantee to ramp up a silicon manufacturing facility in Ohio, the Department of Energy said on Thursday.
Calisolar, a private company in Ohio, will use the grant funding to commercialize a solar silicon manufacturing process to produce silcon.
“This innovative manufacturing process offers significant competitive advantages that will help the U.S. to out-innovate and out-compete our global competitors,” Energy Secretary Steven Chu said in a statement.
Silicon is the key raw material used in photovoltaic solar cells that turn sunlight into electricity. Silcon’s high cost is the major reason that solar power is more expensive than traditional sources such as coal and gas.
Calisolar’s Ohio plant will have the capacity to produce 16,000 metric tons of silicon annually and will create nearly 1,100 permanent jobs.
Written by: Tony Smith
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About The Author
Anthony Smith, PhD, is President and Founder of Secure Solar Futures. He brings over 40 years’ experience in energy efficiency, solar energy, and community economic development in Vermont, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Virginia. He founded Secure Solar Futures in 2004 as CEO and President and leads the company’s innovation development and strategic partnerships. He serves as a founding board member of the Virginia Renewable Energy Alliance (VA-REA). He served as co-director and associate professor of the Eastern Mennonite University MBA program from 2008 to 2015. He earned his Masters in Architecture from the University of Pennsylvania, and a PhD from the Wharton School of Management, University of Pennsylvania.