Signet Solar to Open Thin-Film PV Plant in India

MENLO PARK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Signet Solar, a manufacturer of silicon thin film photovoltaic (PV) modules, today announced plans to locate its second manufacturing site in the Sriperembudur Special Economic Zone near Chennai, India.

Signet Solar’s decision to expand manufacturing in India follows more than $400 million in advance orders for the first three years of production. The German plant, scheduled to start production by Q3 2008, will have a total annual production capacity of 60 MW. Additional production lines will be added to increase manufacturing capacity to over 100 MW in Germany by 2010.

“We are on schedule to start shipping products from our Dresden, Germany manufacturing plant by Q3 2008 and plan to begin shipments from India by 2010, with a goal of achieving grid parity pricing within the next five years,” said Rajeeva Lahri, CEO and Founder of Signet Solar. “We have strong demand in Europe and the US and are pleased that our customers have shown confidence in our engineering capabilities and our global strategy to produce high quality modules on a large scale.”

Signet Solar chose to locate its next manufacturing site in India because of the attractive incentives offered by the Government, including the recently announced semiconductor policy initiative and because of the strong emerging demand for renewable energy in India. Chennai, a port city in southern India, is a growing manufacturing center with well-developed infrastructure, world-class educational institutions and a large pool of engineering talent.

“We are pleased that global companies are responding to the new national policy on semiconductors,” said A. Raja, Honorable Minister of Information Technology and Communications. “Signet Solar’s state-of-the-art photovoltaic technology will play an important role in building nano-manufacturing infrastructure in India and deliver clean energy for sustainable, environmentally friendly growth.”

Large area thin film solar PV modules are in high demand in the utility and commercial market segment due to the lower system cost and higher ROI potential. Signet Solar is focused on manufacturing excellence and technology innovation – allowing it to produce high quality thin film PV modules with an industry-leading price-performance ratio.

Signet Solar customers include solar photovoltaic (PV) system integrators, installers of solar farms for utility scale power generation and independent power producers. Very large glass modules and the relatively lower cost of thin film technology are ideal for large scale PV system installations, building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) and rural electrification. Thin film modules are expected to play a vital role in peak power production and stand-alone applications by avoiding massive investments in power infrastructure. Signet Solar is poised to significantly expand existing markets for Clean Affordable Renewable Energy™ and create vast new opportunities in emerging economies.

Signet Solar Unveils Plans For Thin-Film Plant in India

PALO ALTO, CA, USA; andNEWDELHI,INDIA.—June 7, 2007 — Signet Solar today announced plans to establish significant thin-film solar module manufacturing
capabilities in India. Signet Solar’s India announcement follows plans unveiled last month for a manufacturing and development plant in Dresden, Germany. Signet Solar is a global company founded to design, develop and manufacture large area, low cost,thin-film silicon solar photovoltaic (PV) modules. Signet Solar’s first production line inIndia will have a capacity of 60 megawatts (MW); expanding to 1 gigawatt (GW) inannual production over the next ten years.

Signet Solar’s India production facilities will tap into India’s manufacturing and engineering talent to establish high tech, high volume thin film solar module production. “The announcement by Signet Solar to expand its production capacity will significantly contribute to our plans to accelerate semiconductor and information technology (IT) hardware manufacturing in India,” states Thiru. A. Raja, India’s Honorable Union Minister of Information Technology. “Combined with our highly skilled workforce, India has an opportunity to be a leader in using technology to address pressing global energy needs.”

Worldwide solar PV installations have grown at an annual rate of nearly 40 percent over
the last five years, with demand expected to continue similar growth. In India, the Ministry of Renewable Energy has set a target to produce 10 percent of the country’s power requirements through renewable energy sources by 2012. “Signet Solar’s plans to establish manufacturing operations in India are very timely,” states Shri Vilas Muttemwar, India’s Honorable Minister of New and Renewable Energy. “Our electric power demands will continue to increase as India’s economic growth accelerates. Cost effective alternative power generation technologies and power plants will be essential to help manage peak power demand and distributed power for rural electrification, while being sensitive to the environment.”

“We are convinced that India is ideal for manufacturing the world’s lowest cost solar modules,” said Dr. Prabhu Goel, Chairman and Founder, Signet Solar. “With its manufacturing prowess and vast need for energy, we consider India key to bringing Clean Affordable Renewable Energy, via thin film solar modules, to our customers.”

Applications for the company’s thin film solar modules include solar farms, large commercial installations, building-integrated photovoltaics, remote habitation, and irrigation. Thin film modules are expected to play a vital role in peak power production and stand-alone applications by avoiding massive investments in power infrastructure. Signet Solar is poised to significantly expand existing markets for Clean Affordable Renewable Energy™ and create vast new opportunities in emerging economies. Signet Solar customers will include PV system integrators and installers of solar farms for power generation. The large glass substrates and relatively lower cost of thin film modules are ideal for large scale PV system installations, building-integrated photovoltaics and remote habitation.

About Signet Solar
Signet Solar, Inc. is a global company established in 2006 to bring Clean Affordable Renewable Energy™ to people and countries worldwide. Headquartered in Palo Alto, Calif., the company has been founded to design, develop, manufacture and market thin film silicon photovoltaic modules. For more information, please visit www.signetsolar.com.

Signet Solar To Enter Thin-Film Solar Segment

PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today Signet Solar, Inc. announced its entry into the fastest growing segment of the renewable energy market with cutting-edge silicon thin film solar technology. The company is strongly positioned to accelerate widespread adoption of solar energy by establishing an industry-leading solar photovoltaic (PV) module manufacturing cost structure, targeting grid parity by 2010. For over a year, Signet Solar explored various options and selected the solar PV technology with the greatest potential for significant cost reduction and very large scale manufacturing. Signet Solar was founded by a team of semiconductor technologists and manufacturing executives with a proven track record of commercializing new technologies. Capitalizing on this significant expertise, Signet Solar will design and produce photovoltaic (PV) modules – devices that convert the sun’s rays into electricity – for applications such as solar farms, large commercial installations, building integrated photovoltaics, and remote habitation.

Dr. Prabhu Goel, Chairman and Founder of Signet Solar, stated, “We are excited to apply our extensive experience to this new market. The world is experiencing a massive energy challenge – pressured by fossil fuel depletion, global warming, and increased energy demands in emerging economies. Our vision is to make solar energy a viable choice for a sustainable energy future.”

Signet Solar is establishing its first production line and its research and development headquarters near Dresden, Germany. The company has signed a contract with U.S.-based Applied Materials (NASDAQ: AMAT), a global leader in Nanomanufacturing Technology™ solutions, for a fully-integrated thin film silicon solar PV module production line using the largest glass substrates (greater than five square meters) in the industry.

“Solar module and semiconductor manufacturing are closely related,” said Dr. Mark Pinto, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Applied’s New Business and New Products Group. “We believe that Signet Solar is strongly-positioned to apply its management’s extensive expertise in semiconductor technology and manufacturing to optimize state-of-the-art thin film solar module production. We are excited to have this contract from Signet Solar.”

Signet Solar plans to ramp its production using the Applied Materials equipment line by mid-2008. The Research & Development center will focus on developing and implementing innovative product designs, device architectures and manufacturing methods. The production line near Dresden will be replicated subsequently at locations worldwide. According to Dr. Rajeeva Lahri, Co-Founder, President and CEO of Signet Solar, “The real driver for the $10 billion solar PV industry is cost-per-watt. We will combine U.S. technology and German engineering to achieve a benchmark PV module manufacturing cost structure with world-class quality and reliability.”

Signet Solar customers will include PV system integrators and installers of solar farms for power generation. The large glass substrates and relatively lower cost of thin film modules are ideal for large scale PV system installations, building-integrated photovoltaics and remote habitation. Thin film modules are expected to play a vital role in peak power production and stand-alone applications by avoiding massive investments in power infrastructure. Signet Solar is poised to significantly expand existing markets for Clean Affordable Renewable Energy™ and create vast new opportunities in developing nations.

About Signet Solar

Signet Solar, Inc. is a global company established in 2006 to bring Clean Affordable Renewable Energy™ to people and countries worldwide. Headquartered in Palo Alto, Calif., the company has been founded to design, develop, manufacture and market thin film silicon photovoltaic modules. For more information please visit www.signetsolar.com

Signet Solar and Clean Affordable Renewable Energy™ are trademarks of Signet Solar, Inc. in the United States and other countries.