Soitec Announces Global Alliance With Johnson Controls to Capture Utility Scale Solar Energy Projects

BERNIN, France, October 11, 2010 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Soitec (Euronext Paris), the world's leading supplier of silicon-on-insulator (SOI) and advanced solutions for the electronics and energy industries, announced today that its Concentrix Solar division focusing on concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) systems, has concluded a global alliance with Johnson Controls (NYSE: JCI), the global leader in delivering products, services and solutions that increase energy efficiency in buildings.

Johnson Controls provides turnkey project development, engineering, procurement, construction, operation and maintenance of large scale energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. Under this collaboration, Johnson Controls and Concentrix Solar will identify and respond to commercial opportunities for the project development, and construction of utility scale solar energy facilities. Johnson Controls will build, operate, maintain and provide lifecycle support for solar installations using Concentrix CPV technology.

The combination of the respective strengths of both companies: efficient and cost effective technology on the one hand, and a worldwide leader in energy efficiency and sustainability on the other hand, will provide an unbeatable force to accelerate and widen the successful installation of solar renewable energy utility scale plants in Direct Normal Irradiation (DNI) regions across the globe.

"Before forming our alliance with Concentrix Solar, we studied all primary solar technologies and market participants. We concluded that the combination of Soitec's technical capabilities in engineered substrate solutions and Concentrix Solar's module design together provides the market leading solution for solar power generation in high DNI regions around the world," stated Iain Campbell VP & GM of Global Energy and Workplace Solutions, Johnson Controls.

"We are delighted to team up with Johnson Controls, who shares our vision for sustainable and economically viable, solar renewable energy," said Andre-Jacques Auberton-Herve, chairman and CEO, Soitec. "Together, we understand the market opportunity and positive environmental impact that solar renewable energy power will bring to both existing and future facilities, and are excited to provide integrated solutions to our customers."

Concentrix Solar's cost effective and innovative CPV technology, with its high efficiencies and two-axis tracking, is ideally suited to areas in the world that have high direct solar irradiation.

Concentrix Solar will exhibit in booth #2701 at Solar Power International, October 12-14 in Los Angeles.

About Concentrix Solar

Concentrix Solar GmbH is a leading supplier of concentrator photovoltaic equipment and turnkey power plants for sunny locations. The company was founded in February 2005 as a spin-off from the world-renowned Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE. In December 2009, Concentrix Solar became a division of the Soitec Group.

Concentrix Solar operates a fully automated industrial production line in Freiburg, Germany. Its FLATCON(R) concentrator modules use Fresnel lenses to concentrate sunlight 500 times and focus it onto small, highly efficient solar cells that convert the light into electrical energy. With this technology, Concentrix Solar achieves AC system efficiencies of 25 percent - almost twice as high as those achieved by conventional silicon technology. As a result, Concentrix Solar's systems can reduce the cost of electricity generation by 10 percent to 20 percent compared to other solar technologies, depending on the location of the installation. For more information, visit: http://www.concentrix-solar.de.

About Soitec

Soitec is the world's leading innovator and provider of the engineered substrate solutions that serve as the foundation for today's most advanced microelectronic products. The group leverages its proprietary Smart Cut(TM) technology to engineer new substrate solutions, such as silicon-on-insulator (SOI) semiconductor wafers, which became the first high-volume application for this proprietary technology. Since then, SOI has emerged as the material platform of the future, enabling the production of higher performing, faster chips that consume less power.

Today, Soitec produces more than 80 percent of the world's SOI wafers. Headquartered in Bernin, France, with two high-volume fabs on-site, Soitec has offices throughout the United States, Japan and Taiwan, and a new production site in Singapore.

Three other divisions - Picogiga International, Tracit Technologies and Concentrix Solar - complete the Soitec Group. Picogiga delivers advanced substrates solutions, including III-V epi wafers and gallium nitride (GaN) wafers, to the compound materials market for manufacturing high-frequency electronics and other optoelectronic devices. Tracit provides thin-film layer transfer technologies used to manufacture advanced substrates for power ICs and microsystems as well as generic circuit transfer technology, Smart Stacking(TM), for applications such as image sensors and 3D integration. In December 2009, Soitec acquired 80 percent of Concentrix Solar, the leading provider of concentrated photovoltaic (CPV) solar systems for the industrial production of energy. With this acquisition, Soitec has entered the fast-growing solar market. Shares of the Soitec Group are listed on Euronext Paris. For more information, visit: www.soitec.com.

Soitec, Smart Cut, Smart Stacking and UNIBOND are trademarks of S.O.I.TEC Silicon On Insulator Technologies.

About Johnson Controls

Johnson Controls is a global diversified technology and industrial leader serving customers in over 150 countries. Our 130,000 employees create quality products, services and solutions to optimize energy and operational efficiencies of buildings; lead-acid automotive batteries and advanced batteries for hybrid and electric vehicles; and interior systems for automobiles. Our commitment to sustainability dates back to our roots in 1885, with the invention of the first electric room thermostat. Through our growth strategies and by increasing market share we are committed to delivering value to shareholders and making our customers successful. For additional information, please visit http://www.johnsoncontrols.com.

About Johnson Controls Building Efficiency Johnson Controls Building Efficiency is a leading provider of equipment, controls and services for heating, ventilating, air-conditioning, refrigeration and security systems for buildings. Operating from 500 branch offices in 150 countries, we deliver products, services and solutions that increase energy efficiency and lower operating costs for over one million customers. We are involved in more than 500 renewable energy projects including solar, wind and geothermal technologies. Our solutions have reduced carbon dioxide emissions by 13.6 million metric tons and generated savings of $7.5 billion since 2000. Many of the world's largest companies rely on us to manage 1.5 billion square feet of their commercial real estate.

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SOURCE Soitec