$1.6B Solar Glass Plant to Rise in Malaysia

Written by Sabrina Deparine

Thursday, 18 March 2010 11:12

Last Updated on Thursday, 18 March 2010 11:34

Page views: 118

A new Hong Kong-based solar power company is clearly making its presence felt. Sun Bear Solar Incorporated is planning to build the first-ever solar glass manufacturing plant in Malaysia. The company has committed to invest 5.2 billion ringgit (USD 1.6 billion) in the planned solar hub.

Sun Bear Solar is also reportedly eyeing a production plant in the Kota Kinabalu Industrial Park. The Kota Kinabalu Industrial Park is Malaysia’s 8,320-acre park located in Sabah. To date, this industrial park has already contributed to the boosting of commercial activities in Eastern Malaysia.

For this year, around 2.2 billion Malaysian ringgits will be allocated for the first phase of the project particularly for the purchase of equipment and overall plant set-up. Three billion Malaysian ringgits will be allotted for the second phase which involves plant expansion on a 300-acre land. Full production and operation is expected to start by 2012.

$1.6B Solar Glass Plant to Rise in Malaysia

$1.6B Solar Glass Plant to Rise in Malaysia

Solar glass is the base material used for solar module applications such as thin-film and polycrystalline solar cells. The plant’s solar glass products will be exported to West Malaysia and other Southeast Asian markets. Sun Bear Solar selected Malaysia because of the country’s abundance in solar glass raw materials. In Sabah, for instance, there are abundant supplies of low ion silicon sands and limestone.

This project is timely for Malaysia since the country is also pushing for solar panel manufacturing growth because they believe that this will help boost their technology and economy. The country is also prioritizing the solar industry among renewable energy sources.