Malaysia set to be world's 2nd solar manufacturer

Malaysia has the potential to emerge as the world's second largest manufacturer of solar cells judging from the influx of investments flowing into the sector, said Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Mohd Yassin.


He said Malaysia was third after China and Germany in the manufacture of solar cells.

"But given the increasing global demand and the potential for the production hub to shift to Malaysia, given the high cost in Germany, it is not impossible for the country to soon emerge as the second largest solar cell producer in the world," he told reporters after the ground breaking ceremony of Solar Twin Creeks Malaysia Sdn Bhd (TCMSB) at the Khantan industrial zone near here.

TCMSB is a joint venture between Twin Creeks Technologies Incorporated (TCTI), Perak State Development Corporation and Red Solar (M) Sdn Bhd.

Also present was Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir and the Chief Executive Officer of TCTI, Dr Siva Sivaram.

He said Malaysia was capable of drawing large investments into the solar cell industry as there was a chain of related industries and the country was rich in raw materials and had adequate skilled manpower.

"Malaysia has companies that has advanced themselves in this field like those which are manufacturers of solar cells, silicon and module assembly," he added.

Muhyiddin said the government would provide various incentives not only to support the development of the industry but also to draw investors into the expansion of the green energy technology.

The Deputy Prime Minister said the industry, being very capital intensive, required several incentives to ensure it operated smoothly.

He also said the initial cost of providing infrastructure for the development of this technology was rather steep but it provided very good returns on investments in the long-term besides providing opportunities to local companies to become raw material suppliers.

TCMSB has invested about RM1 billion to produce 100 MW of green energy in 2012 and this will be increased to 500 MW in 2014.

The technology used by TCMSB in the manufacture of solar cells differed from those used by other manufacturers in the country as it did not involve toxic metals.

The company has 1,000 employees consisting 500 semi-skilled workers, 200 engineers while managers and supervisors accounted for the rest.

TCMSB aims to become the leading manufacturer of solar cell and solar panels in the country and targetted to export 30 per cent of its products to South East Asia. -- Bernama

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