LDK Solar Co., Ltd.,
a leading manufacturer of solar wafers, today announced it has signed a new
agreement with GT Solar International, Inc. to purchase polysilicon CVD reactors
for installation in LDK Solar's manufacturing facilities in Xinyu City, Peoples
Republic of China. This equipment is used to make polysilicon. The estimated
value of the contract is $32 million.
"We are pleased to have signed this new agreement with GT Solar, a
valued provider with which we have a long-standing relationship," said
Xiaofeng Peng, LDK Solar's chairman and chief executive officer. "As the
demand for solar energy continues to grow, so does our need to increase and
accelerate our manufacturing capacity. With GT Solar's reactor and DSS
furnace technologies and expertise, we feel confident that we will be able
to meet our rising production goals."
"During the more than five years that GT Solar has been conducting
business in China, we've designed manufacturing processes and supplied
equipment to some of the country's largest solar wafer and cell producers,
including LDK Solar," said Tom Zarrella, president and chief executive
officer for GT Solar. "We look forward to continuing our work with LDK
Solar, and to helping this company further its position as a leader in low
cost solar wafer manufacturing."
Polysilicon is a highly purified form of silicon that is used to make
both semiconductor wafers for microelectronics applications and solar
wafers. The chemical vapor deposition process involved in the production of
polysilicon takes place in a specialized CVD reactor using a variety of
complex chemical processes.