AQT Solar secures $18.7 million to fuel growth through 2012

SUNNYVALE, USA: AQT Solar, a leading developer of low-cost CIGS (copper-indium-gallium-diselenide) thin-film solar cells, has secured $18.7 million in venture funding to deploy a second CIGS line at the company’s Sunnyvale facility. The Series B investment, which was at a higher valuation for the company than the previous round of funding, brings the total amount of capital that AQT has attracted to date to almost $40 million.

This funding round follows a year of consistent progress and growth for AQT. The company’s Sunnyvale site is now operating around the clock and will have an installed solar cell capacity of more than 30MW by mid-year. AQT cells are currently used in 100 watt CIGS modules that are being field deployed. By year-end, up to 180 watt CIGS modules powered by AQT cells are expected to be available in the market.

AQT’s CIGS 2.0 technology allows for continuous in-line production, which simplifies and streamlines the manufacturing process, resulting in the highest projected capital efficiency in the industry, while minimizing component costs. This manufacturing pathway has resulted in the development, shipment and scaling of CIGS module product in just four years and for less than $40M in funding, making AQT the market leader in time-to-market and cost-to-market.

“Our business strategy uniquely positions us to compete and grow in an increasingly crowded, noisy and aggressive market,” said Michael Bartholomeusz, CEO of AQT Solar. “AQT is laser focused on what we believe are the key elements to success in any commodity industry: leverage, cost, risk mitigation, partnerships and future proofing.”