Motech Executive Issues Optimistic Forecast on Solar Cell Industry

Taipei, Sept. 27, 2005 (CENS)--Luke Chang, general manager of Motech Industries Inc.'s solar power business unit, recently forecast that the world's solar-cell industry would maintain an production annual growth of 30% in the years to come, and that solar energy will supply 20% of the Earth's total energy needs by 2040.

Chang issued the optimistic forecasts on solar energy last week at an international investment-solicitation forum organized by the Taiwan government. His company is currently Taiwan's No. 1 supplier of solar cells.

Inspired by rising crude oil prices, Motech's share price closed up NT$6.5 at NT$418 per share last Friday. Chang pointed out that most of the world's solar-cell suppliers, including Solar World of Germany, Evergreen and MEMC of the U.S., and Tokuyama of Japan had seen their share prices surge on rising oil prices.

Chang pointed out that Japan has the world's highest solar-energy utilization rate, thanks to government subsidies to families installing solar-energy equipment. Italy and Germany have the world's second- and third-highest rates of usage of the energy. He added that for houses in remote areas where power grid networks cannot reach, solar energy is an ideal energy resource.

Chang said his company has installed its solar-cell systems at many government and corporate buildings on the island. He expected Motech to begin tapping the domestic household market soon.

In spite of the bright projections, the world solar-cell industry has been recently hamstrung by shortages of the silicon wafers that are the raw materials for the cells.

Industry insiders point out that raw-material suppliers usually spend much more capital for production than do cell makers and cell-module makers. For instance, while a cell maker might spend NT$400 million (US$12 million at US$1:NT$33) to create new capacity, and a module maker might spend NT$200 million to develop new capacity, a raw-material supplier must invest NT$800 million (US$24 million) to develop the capacity to produce the materials needed for cells and modules.

According to a study recently released by the government-backed Industry Technology Research Institute (ITRI), the world market for solar energy products increased to 1,100 megawatts last year from 2000's 287 megawatts and 1990's 46 megawatts.