2009 PV Taiwan: Orders flood in, dazzling venture glows with success
PC's Solar Photovoltaics Blog
The message is clear! Solar is hot, very hot, and after 2009 PV Taiwan there’s no turning back.
Thethree-day event from Oct.7 to Oct. 9 attracted 10,160 visitors, a 65percent increase from the previous year. Among them were 1,421 foreignbuyers (+58 percent from 2008) who represented nations as diverse asGermany, the USA, Japan, Australia, Mexico, Singapore, India, and China.
Thisevent also known as the 2009 Taiwan Int’l Photovoltaic Forum, markedthe first collaboration between TAITRA (Taiwan External TradeDevelopment Council) and SEMI (Semiconductor Equipment and MaterialsInt’l).
Visitors from over 50 countries join PV Taiwan
Atthe Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology’s first-ever pavilion,spokesperson Ms. Gabriele Haase at the pavilion praised the planningand execution of the PV Taiwan that greatly helped to attract floods ofvisitors.
In addition the “Germany Day” series of seminars onOct. 8 also paraded vast opportunities. After meeting with success atthe show, the German organizers look forward to bringing more Germancompanies for next year show.
These and other pavilions formed adazzling venue that attracted buyers from both Europe and Japan toplace massive orders, many of which were signed right on the showfloor. Wu, a director of the module manufacturer Perfect Source Tech.Corp., also pointed out that besides the European clientele, manybuyers came from Japan and took advantage of the factory tours toinspect Taiwan production.
HCPV Pavilion pulls in crowds
Withouta doubt the special HCPV Pavilion was the hottest spot at the show. Itspotlighted high concentration photovoltaic (HCPV), HCPV products andtechnology. This area hosted speeches from world-renowned experts, aswell as a photovoltaic museum which detailed the technical applicationsand development trends of HCPV.
The 32 booths displayed HCPVmodules and technology from 13 leading HCPV companies and researchinstitutions, including Everphoton Energy Co., Compound SolarTechnology Co., Arima EcoEnergy Technologies Corp., Arima Photovoltaicand Optical Corp., Millennium Communication Co., Huang Yih GearIndustry Co., Powertronics Co., Tisamax Technical Co., Green SourceTechnology Co., Pan-Co International Co., SUMITRONICS TAIWAN CO., LTD.,and the Institute of Nuclear Energy Research.
“This year’sexhibition was the first in which HCPV companies joined in their owndedicated area,” stated marketing director of Everphoton Energy Co.Annie Lai. “That went a long way in helping us to profile Taiwan’s HCPVindustry. and helped to attract large numbers of buyers and inquiries.Overall buyers increased 20 percent on last year’s show and there wasgreat interest from buyers from the US, Germany, Hungary, andAustralia.”
“That new HCPV Area greatly helped HCPV companies,”noted Yong-Si Su, project planning director at Epistar Corp. who notedthat “PV Taiwan’s gala banquet brought together companies in Taiwan’sphotovoltaic industry, giving upstream and downstream companies a greatchance to establish connections; I hope there will be more events ofthis kind in the future.”
Standing room only in PV forum
Heldfrom Oct. 7 to 8 in Room 201 of the Taipei International ConventionCenter, the Taipei Summit and PV Taiwan Forum 2009 drew an audience ofmore than 500 visitors during their four sessions.
Participantscame from home and abroad, including high ranking officials from ASEANcountries: Fortunato dela Peña, Undersecretary for Science andTechnology Services of the Philippines; Sorayut Phettakul, ViceMinister for Trade and Industry of Thailand; and Ms. Took Gee Loo,Deputy Secretary General of Malaysia’s Ministry of Energy, GreenTechnology and Water.
This year’s forum included 18 guestinternational speakers, namely the Managing Director at Morgan StanleySunil Gupta, President of Solarbuzz LLC Craig Stevens, LDK ChairmanXiaofeng Peng, President of Sino-American Silicon Products Inc. Ms.Doris Hsu, Director General of ISFOC Dr. Pedro Banda, and CEO of WürthSolar Bernhard Dimmler.
These experts covered a wide range ofissues, including technologies and trends in the photovoltaic industry,polysilicon and other new materials, applications for new photovoltaictechnologies, and the development of thin-film solar cells. Theiranalyses and opinions on PV spurred lively interactions with theiraudiences.
Thumbs up for innovation event
The nine New Products & Solution Outlook during the course of the exhibition also drew full crowds.
Internationalbuyers asked about smart, low-cost, highly efficient solar cells, andthe development and application of new technologies and products, andscheduled further post-conference visits to exhibition booths inexpectation of future business opportunities.
PV Museum stages glowing roots of solar
Thisyear’s PV Taiwan featured the Photovoltaic Museum that drew an endlessflow of visitors reflected on the past as PV Museum guides outlinedimportant milestones in the development of the photovoltaic industrywhile full production displays provided valuable information on theproduction of solar cells.
The 3-in-1 heat insulation solarglass developed by National Taiwan University of Science and Technologyamazed the crowds and drew potential buyers to hands-on demonstrationswith its combination of insulating, self-cleaning, and electricgeneration properties, and an 8? indoor temperature drop afterapplication. The conferences also included daily draws for pre-registerbuyers, with the PS3 console top prize proving to be a hot attraction.
Inthe adjacent applied products display much attention was directed tothe applied products display, which focused on the application oftechnology in everyday life.
One popular product on displaywas the solar-powered pet house developed by National Taiwan Universityof Science and Technology, which uses solar energy to power deodorizingequipment, fans, and lights. This won the hearts of many US buyers whosigned orders on the spot.
There was also a solar poweredcockroach elimination machine developed by Hung Der Technical andCommercial High School that re-charges with solar power to sense andelectrocute cockroaches. This brought in many inquiries from visitingbuyers and offers to collaborate in production.
Internationalbuyers were also highly interested in Ching Yun University’s trendysolar car; the Industrial Technology Research Institute of Taiwan’ssolar cooking pot (that cooks food using optical reflection) andSolarfocus Technology’s solar powered clothes, which helps bloodcirculation, and maintains a comfortable temperature for the wearer.
Thephotovoltaic industry has rebounded and been busy receiving and fillingorders. For example, Quincy Lin, CEO of Neo Solar Power Corp. (NSP)says production at his company has been in full throttle since July,and buyer inquiries at the exhibition remained high even though thecompany has already a full order list to keep it busy up to next year.Lin stated that this year’s exhibition was much larger than lastyear’s, and the large turn-out made it easier to heighten corporateprofile.
All companies agreed that foreign buyers wereespecially active in this year’s PV Taiwan especially as the new USadministration has strongly been promoting a green energy policy. Thisyear’s exhibition also welcomed a group of 33 US senators andrepresentatives along with house speakers and majority leaders fromHawaii and several New England states. This high profile group laudedTaiwan’s green energy industry and the exhibition itself, indicating ahigh international interest in the Taiwanese market.
The jointefforts of TAITRA and SEMI helped 2009 PV Taiwan join domestic andforeign companies under one roof and to stage Taiwan’s massiveindustrial and R&D power and the diversity of the industry. Withthe high standards set in this year’s exhibition, and the activeparticipation of buyers from more than 50 countries, Taiwan’s solarindustry has established a solid position in the international arena.
Expect to see an even bigger and better show at the next PV Taiwan from Oct. 26-28, 2010!
