Start-up and operation of an integrated 10 MWp thin film PV module factory

ANTEC Solar GmbH has entered production of thin film solar modules on a scale of 100,000 m² per year, using closed-spaced sublimation as the deposition technique for the semiconductor films and high-rate in-line sputtering for transparent and opaque contacts. The standard module size is 60 × 120 cm². The equipment has been built, installed and integrated in 2000, start-up phase has been finished in September 2001. Full capacity of 11,000 modules per month will be achieved during the second half of 2002. The line operates 24 hours per day for seven days per week, allowing for one service shift to replenish consumed materials. The line presently has a cycle time of 120 s, which is planned to be decreased to the nominal value of 90 s. Efficiencies of the CdS/CdTe standard modules are about 7%, expected to rise continuously with time.