ARISE Technologies Signs Lease for Pilot Plant to Produce 7N+ Polysilicon Tue Oct 7, 5:05 PM Email StoryIM StoryPrintable View WATERLOO, ON, Oct. 7 /CNW/ - ARISE Technologies Corporation (TSX: APV and Frankfurt: A3T), which is dedicated to becoming a leader in high-performance, cost-effective solar technology, today announced that it has signed a lease for a facility in Kitchener, Ontario where it will locate its new pilot plant for the production of 7N+ solar-grade polysilicon.
The 10-year lease, with options for two additional five-year terms, is for a 68,000-square-foot building at 95 Washburn Drive, Kitchener. ARISE's PV Silicon Division plans to use the facility to establish production capacity of 50 tonnes per year of its 7N+ solar-grade polysilicon in 2009. The facility can support a further expansion of production capacity to 400 tonnes per year in 2010. ARISE expects to use the initial 7N+ polysilicon that it produces for the manufacture of PV (photovoltaic) cells at its manufacturing plant in Bischofswerda, Germany.
The company completed the leasing agreement through the commercial real estate services company, CB Richard Ellis Limited, and also has concluded contracts with a number of suppliers who will assist in the pilot plant's development, including Rooflifters Inc., TMP The Mitchell Partnership Inc., Fortech Engineering Ltd., MTE Consultants and Melloul-Blamey Construction.
"With signing this lease and various agreements with consulting engineers and contractors who will be our partners in establishing this exciting pilot plant, ARISE is on schedule to meet our planned start-up for the production of increasingly larger volumes of 7N+ polysilicon," said Bart Tichelman, President and Chief Executive Officer.
"This property meets all of the requirements that we established for a building that could be cost-effectively repurposed with the flexibility to enable us to add capacity in stages. The plant will be using the proprietary production method being developed by our PV Silicon Division. The initial next-generation Silicon Refining Furnace (SiRF(TM) 4) has been fabricated and is running at our supplier's plant, and deliveries to us are set for the 2009 first quarter," Mr. Tichelman said.
ARISE has been producing high-purity silicon at a Silicon Feedstock Mini Pilot Plant operating since 2007 at its head-office facilities in Waterloo, Ontario. The Mini Pilot Plant uses earlier generation, smaller scale SiRF furnaces to develop its production methods to achieve the 7N+ purity level needed for high-efficiency PV cells. The production process uses a simplified chemical vapour deposition process.
About ARISE Technologies
ARISE Technologies Corporation, based in Waterloo, Ontario, is dedicated to becoming a leader in high-performance, cost-effective solar technology. The company operates through three divisions. The PV Cell Division manufactures PV (photovoltaic) cells at its first manufacturing plant in Bischofswerda, Germany. The division is developing proprietary technology with a target of achieving a step-by-step progression to a high-efficiency level of greater than 20 percent. The PV Silicon Division is using a proprietary method to produce silicon at 7N+ high-purity (99.99999 percent purity) for PV cell applications, based on a simplified chemical vapor deposition process. The division is focusing on scaling up its process to provide ARISE with control over its supply, costs, and quality. The PV Systems Division provides complete turnkey PV solutions for solar farms and rooftop installations under the Ontario standard offer program.
The company's shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol APV and on the Frankfurt Open Market Exchange under the symbol A3T. Additional information is available at www.arisetech.com and www.sedar.com.
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