European Commission aid for solar manufacture in Germany and Spain

The European Commission has authorised two tranches of investment aid for solar production, one in Spain and one in Germany.

The commission has granted €8.5m (£7.2m) of regional investment aid to the Spanish company Silicio Solar SAU for the production of solar wafers in Puertollano, Ciudad Real (Castilla-La–Mancha).

The project involves total investments of €219m for the construction of a new plant next to an existing one.

Silicio Solar SAU is owned by Pillar BV, a Dutch company. Silicio's output will be supplied within Pillar to Global Sun, another subsidiary, which is responsible for the commercialisation of the wafers which are then sold to manufacturers of solar modules..

The Spanish authorities already granted €20.9m in aid for the same investment under an approved aid scheme, but extra aid from the commission is appropriate, said Joaquín Almunia, commission vice president in charge of competition policy.

“This investment project is expected to create 400 new jobs in Puertollano and will contribute to the development of the region without unduly distorting competition," he said.

Similarly, Almunia waved through €17m of regional investment aid for the German company Solibro GmbH for the production of solar modules in Bitterfeld-Wolfen (Sachsen-Anhalt), Germany.

The project involves a total investment of €142m and is expected to create at least 260 new jobs in a region which has unusually high unemployment.

Germany limited the aid amount to the maximum that would be allowable taking account of aid granted to a previous investment project by Solibro. The commission concluded that, on balance, the positive effects of the investment on regional development outweigh potential distortions of competition brought about by the aid.

Solibro manufactures thin film solar modules based on the copper-indium-gallium-(di-)selenide (CIGS) technology. Solibro is a subsidiary of Q-Cells SE, which sells solar modules and systems.

Solibro already has a solar module production plant in Bitterfeld-Wolfen, for which it received regional aid in 2007. The new investment comprises the extension of this first plant and the construction of a second plant on an adjacent site. The project started in October 2008 and will be finalised by the end of 2010.

Both companies hold a market share of less than 25 per cent globally in their respective sectors, which also qualifies them for EC aid.