DuPont Hosts U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke at DuPont Apollo Thin Film Photovoltaic R&D Centre

DuPont hosted U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke, along with several U.S. business leaders and government officials, at the DuPont Apollo Thin Film Photovoltaic (PV) R&D Centre in the Hong Kong Science and Technology Park as part of Secretary Locke’s trade mission to China.

As the first Obama Administration trade mission, Locke is promoting exports of leading U.S. technologies related to clean energy, energy efficiency and electronic energy storage, transmission and distribution.

“DuPont is proud to be a part of this important trade mission because we share a commitment to meet the needs for clean energy technologies as China’s economy continues to grow,” said Douglas Muzyka, president – DuPont Greater China. “China has made clean energy and energy efficiency a priority, and we believe this is a tremendous opportunity to showcase our thin film photovoltaic R&D lab and manufacturing facilities in the Asia Pacific region. DuPont Apollo represents the first total solar energy solution provider in China offering the market a one-stop thin film solution to respond and contribute to China’s goal of deriving 15 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2020.”

Du Pont Apollo Ltd., established in 2008, is the first project under the “Shenzhen-Hong Kong Innovation Circle,” which is led by the Hong Kong SAR Government and Shenzhen Municipal Government to establish the region as a hub for innovative solar research. DuPont Apollo thin film photovoltaic modules are well-suited for commercial rooftop and large-scale solar farm applications.

Thin-film photovoltaic modules are projected to be the fastest growing segment of the solar module industry because of their potential to reduce the cost of producing solar-derived energy — helping solar power become more competitive with other forms of energy generation. The modules can generate more wattage output under diffuse lighting conditions, and consume only about 1/200 the silicon of traditional crystalline silicon solar cells, resulting in shorter energy payback times.