A silicon purification plant in Brazil might be announced before the year 2012 is over, according to the chief of the renewable energy department at BNDES, Antonio Tovar.
Silicon is an essential element for the photovoltaic panel production process.
Such production has interested many businessmen, who have started to create projects located in Brazil during the last two years. Those projects mainly aim to mass-produce photovoltaic panels in this country. As a consequence, the negotiations with many potential silicon providers have started.
This process has been influenced by Annel, the Brazilian Electricity Regulatory Agency, which expects consumers to install their own power production system for self-consumption.
The representatives at BNDES stated that the Brazilian bank would undertake to finance the whole production line for installing solar power farms with domestic resources.
BNDES already supports research projects with resources from a technologic fund for the conversion of metallurgical grade silicon into solar grade silicon.
The biggest investment within this production line is installing a silicon purification plant, which requires about 1,000 million dollars.
