German thin-film solar firm Sulfurcell enters US market

June 23, 2010

German company Sulfurcell is now offering its thin film solar modules in the US market, for rooftop and building integrated applications.

One of the largest producers of thin-film solar modules in the world, the Berlin-based company said it is developing a network of system integrators and installers across North America in the coming months.

The company, which is partly financed by US firm Intel Capital, will run its American operations from new offices in Los Angeles.

Nikolaus Meyer, CEO of Sulfurcell, said he was confident of a broad adoption of his company’s technology in the American market.

He said: “Sulfurcell’s thin-film modules combine black-tile aesthetics and high performance within a wide range of temperatures making them ideal for building integrated, residential and commercial rooftop applications.”

“Attractive”

The company says the smooth black appearance and compact format will make the modules “very attractive” for architects to include in building-integrated systems. The systems come as framed, frameless or roof-integrated modules.

The technology’s resilience to high temperatures would also make them “ideal” for desert utility-scale solar projects, the firm believes.

Since its commercial-scale production started in 2005, Sulfurcell has made and sold more than 100,000 of its copper-indium-sulfide (CIS) solar panels.

Sulfurcell sees itself as one of the three largest manufacturers of CIS/CIGSe-based thin-film modules in the world.

The company says its production process means its thin film modules can be made “substantially” thinner than rival technologies, using less energy in the manufacturing process.

The modules are IEC-certified and have been tested to demonstrate performance after 2,000 hours at 85°C and 85% humidity.

As well as Intel Capital, the company is financially backed by the BEU fund, a fund supported by Swedish power giant Vattefall and French energy company Gaz de France.