The plan, for 2006 to 2010, is aimed at reducing solar cell manufacturing costs by bringing total production costs down from Bt160 per watt to Bt80 per watt in the next five years.

The plan also hopes to encourage the use of solar cells as a substitute for 10 per cent of the country's total power consumption at peak hours in the next 15 years.

NSTDA has set a Bt1 billion budget for the five-year development.

Solar cells can reduce the load of power consumption in the country as they're suitable for use in manufacturing plants, hospitals, schools and especially in remote areas that electricity infrastructure does not reach.

Porponth Sichanugrist, the assistant to the president at NSTDA and also acting director of the Institute of Solar Energy Development, said that the plan would focus on reducing manufacturing costs by pushing local development of raw materials and machinery to produce solar cells in the country.

"As the cost of key materials and machinery accounts for 22 and 28 per cent respectively, if we develop these within the country instead of importing we can dramatically reduce the production cost," Porponth said.

Under the plan, NSTDA will push local development of coated glass, which is a key material to produce solar cells. Glass coated with zinc oxide to conduct electricity now has to be imported and there are only two companies in the world producing this kind of glass.

Porponth said the agency planned to conduct research to find a method to coat zinc oxide on the glass and hoped that this research will lead to production of 0.8-square-metre coated glass in the next three years.

With local development, he said the price of this material would be around 50 per cent lower than imported coated glass.

To reduce the cost of solar cells, the research team has also developed machinery for production and Porponth said this would reduce investment costs by around 50 per cent.

In addition, the agency is now in the process of setting up a three-megawatt production line prototype. By using machinery developed locally, the prototype, which is to be complete in October, will be a model for those who want to set up a solar cell plant. The agency spent more than Bt100 million to set up this production line.

"The production line will have the same process as those used commercially, so we can also use it for our solar cell research and production," Porponth said.

Meanwhile, the improvement of solar cell efficiency is also in the development pipeline. Porponth said the agency hoped to increase its solar cell's conversion efficiency, which is now around 10 per cent, to reach 18 per cent for a one-square centimetre cell and 15 per cent for a 0.8-square metre solar panel in the next five years. Conversion efficiency is the ability that the cell has to convert the energy it receives to electricity.

Since solar cells can be used on roofs to generate electricity, the agency also plans to build an integrated solar cell roof next year. "Once a solar cell is integrated in the roof, it offers more convenience for construction, and importantly, reduces the cost of implementation," Porponth said.

Commercial integrated solar cell roofs offer 10 per cent cost savings but the agency plans to develop such roofs to offer at least 30 per cent savings.

pongpen@nationgroup.com

Pongpen Sutharoj

The Nation

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Aim is 10% conversion efficiency

The National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA) is planning to create a joint-venture with a private company to set up a new solar cell manufacturing plant in Thailand. This plant will also use technology developed by the agency for production.

 The project is expected to cost around Bt500 million to establish, of which Bt130 million will come from the agency's technology licensing fee.

 According to Porponth Sichanugrist, assistant to the president at NSTDA, the agency is negotiating with a private firm to set up a venture to produce solar cell technology developed totally by Thais.

 He said an agreement would soon be reached and the construction of the new plant will begin by the third quarter of this year.

 The plant's operation is expected to start a year later, with an initial production capacity of 10 megawatts per year.

 Solar cells produced in the plant will use the latest NSTDA solar-cell technology that offers 10 per cent conversion efficiency. Under the plan, the new company will initially produce solar cells for export.

 Solar cell technology is to be the flagship of NSTDA and will help put it on the global map as developer of solar cell technology, Porponth added.