Calisolar rakes in $23.5m in plan to bolster recently acquired 6N

Solar cell manufacturer Calisolar has this week raised $23.5m (£15.3m) in funding in a bid to boost its manufacturing capacity and expand recently acquired 6N's silicon purification operations in Ontario, Canada.

The Sunnyvale, California-based company purchased 6N, one of its former suppliers, a couple of weeks ago in a stock-swap deal. The company said the acquisition was designed to help it reduce its manufacturing costs and improve silicon yields.

Speaking at the time, Roy Johnson, Calisolar's chief executive, said the deal represented a "major step towards our mission to reduce the cost of solar".

Both Calisolar and 6N make silicon that can be combined with waste materials from the computer chip manufacturing industry in order to make crystalline silicon for use in solar panels.

By optimising its manufacturing processes, Calisolar hopes to be able to recycle more silicon and at the same time lower supply chain and distribution costs for solar panels.

It started shipping its first solar cell products commercially in January.

The new financing was provided by previous investors in both companies and is part of a targeted $36m round, according to a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

Calisolar has raised $171m since it was set up in 2006 and is backed by Advanced Technology Ventures, Globespan Capital Partners and Hudson Clean Energy Partners. It has also received $51.6m in tax credits as part of the US government's federal stimulus package.

6N, meanwhile, has received investment from Good Energies, Ventures West and Yaletown Ventures.