12 September 2011

Baja Sun partners with Arima, launching Mexico’s first integrated solar firm

During a visit by Governor Osuna of Baja California to Arima’s operations in Taipei, Taiwan, Baja Sun Energy SRL announced the formation of the first integrated solar business in Mexico.

Baja Sun Energy will construct a concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) solar module manufacturing plant and use the panels produced for a utility-scale solar generation facility, all located in Silicon Border Science Park, a 2000-hectare ‘CleanTECH Park’ in Mexicali, Mexico (strategically located at the crossroads of the power grids of the USA and Mexico) that caters to the specialized needs of the renewable energy sector (including wind, solar, algae harvesting and smart grid companies looking for factory sites and energy generation sites).

The announcement took place as Baja Sun and Arima Solar completed agreements making Arima a stakeholder and supplier of CPV technology, gallium arsenide semiconductors and other materials to Baja Sun. The governor met with Arima’s chairman Stephen Lee as well as executives of Baja Sun Energy and Silicon Border.

Initial plans include investments of more than $500m over the next four years. Baja Sun’s factory will break ground later this year, and will be outfitted by Arima with a turnkey CPV manufacturing equipment line to manufacture cells, modules and dual-axis tracking systems. The firm has already secured a top-tier customer for a 10MW solar farm.

Annual capacity will be built out to more than 100MW, with more than 4240 direct employees. The inclusion of the State University (UABC) Campus on the Silicon Border CleanTECH Park and a collaboration with University of California San Diego should ensure that the location’s human resource needs are met, it is reckoned. Mexican employees will be trained at the Arima Eco factory in Taiwan. The total supply chain should ultimately create more than 8000 jobs for the Baja California/San Diego Mega Region.

The factory will ultimately also have its own 150MW utility-scale solar power plant (the balance of the capacity will be sold to both users and utility companies in Mexico and the USA).

Baja Sun reckons that, as an integrated CPV enterprise, it will also be able to provide the lowest-cost solar energy solution for North America. With manufacturing plants on the border of Baja California, the firm will also establish sales & marketing operations in San Diego, CA. Arima Eco, Grupo Maiz (of Monterrey, Mexico) and Silicon Border will own the new company.

“We are at the center of a huge market for solar, wind and other kinds of renewables, including the energy warehousing project we recently announced,” says Silicon Border’s CEO DJ Hill. “From our park you can reach most of the western United States in less than a day by truck. Talent and tax incentives make this location very competitive to China. Furthermore, products made here can be used for stimulus projects such as ‘Buy American’ because of the NAFTA [North American Free Trade Agreement] treaty. We also have green infrastructure including water, waste treatment and LED lighting, more eco-friendly than anywhere else in North America,” he adds. 

“Mexico has more sunshine per capita than most countries in the world, and it is only fitting that we start a Mexican company to capture the sun for our own use in the State of Baja California,” says Governor Osuna. “The solar market is expected to grow from the currently installed 2.1GW at the end of 2009 (according to the Solar Energy Industries Association) to 44GW by 2020 in North America over the next 10 years. Mexico can be one of the world's largest players in this process, given our cost and location advantages,” he reckons. 

“We are very optimistic about this new venture that will expand our product reach to the Americas while we cover Asia and the rest of the world,” says Arima Group chairman Steven Lee. “While we are confident that the experienced team of Baja Sun can do the job with our support, we find that the Government support for this project and Arima Eco ensures success,” he comments. “We also had great support from the Mayor of Mexicali and the Federal Government’s ProMexico Organization, from the local Commissioner of Trade here in Taiwan to the Director General himself.”

Tags: CPV

Visit: www.arimaeco.com

Visit: www.siliconborder.com