MEMC (NYSE: WFR) has taken an ownership interest in Eversol Corporation (3647.TW), a solar wafer manufacturer in Taiwan.
In connection with the contract amendment between MEMC and Gintech Energy (3514.TW) dated September 22, 2009, MEMC purchased Gintech’s 8.36% interest in Eversol at Gintech’s original cost.
In a subsequent transaction, as part of a recent capital raise by Eversol, MEMC invested $5.0 million for an additional 5.1 million shares, bringing MEMC’s ownership stake in Eversol to approximately 10.6%.
"We are pleased to strengthen our strategic partnership with Eversol," commented Ken Hannah, President of MEMC Solar Materials. "In addition to our plans to bring solar wafer manufacturing capability in-house, MEMC is identifying strategic partners for solar wafer manufacturing. With a mix of internal and external solar wafering capacity, we can minimize fixed costs and maintain the flexibility to satisfy growing levels of demand."
MEMC Invests in Installer
MEMC also participated in a $20 million series B financing round for California solar system installer Tioga Energy (www.tiogaenergy.com).
MEMC purchased SunEdison, a competitor of Tioga Energy, in October.
MEMC makes silicon wafers which are then sold to companies that make solar cells and panels. MEMC’s move into the solar installation business surprised many industry watchers, because component makers generally expand on the component side of the business to build towards vertical integration. However, MEMC has chosen to skip farther downstream to project development.
“This investment supports our strategy to drive revenue growth in our solar wafer business,” said Ahmad Chatila, CEO of MEMC. “Tioga is a leading provider of solar ‘power purchase agreements’ in North America, with a solid management team and strong growth expectations. Tioga and MEMC have common business values, as well as a common goal of accelerating the use of solar energy by achieving grid-competitive pricing. With their established presence in the US market, they will make a strong partner for MEMC and our solar cell and module customers.”
Other investors in the funding round included NGEN Partners, Nth Power and Draper Fisher Jurvetson.
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