| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Solar Energy |
| Founded | 2007 |
| Headquarters | Loveland, Colorado, U.S. |
| Key people | Tom Tiller (CEO) |
| Products | Solar panels |
| Website | [1] |
Abound Solar[1] is a manufacturer of CdTe thin-film photovoltaic modules. At its production facility in Longmont, Colorado, Abound is using a proprietary semiconductor deposition process utilizing CdTe to produce reliable, low-cost solar modules designed for commercial- and utility-scale installations. The company was incorporated as AVA Solar in 2007 and was rebranded as Abound Solar in March 2009. The company has signed long-term supply contracts with two of the world’s leading solar project developers.
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Abound Solar’s founders have been researching thin-film deposition since the late 1980s. In 1991, W.S. Sampath, a professor at Colorado State University,[2] patented a process for low-cost metal deposition within a vacuum. After visiting an aluminum can processing facility, Professor Sampath was inspired by the idea that despite a multitude of steps, aluminum cans are produced for only half a cent more than the cost of the raw material. He realized that if solar modules could be made with the same level of efficiency, solar electricity could be the answer to the world’s energy needs. Along with Al Enzenroth and Kurt Barth,[3] Professor Sampath settled upon cadmium telluride (CdTe) as the ideal photovoltaic material for low-cost solar module production.
By 1998, the team had developed a pilot production process featuring an inline, single-vacuum semiconductor deposition tool. Over the course of the next few years, the team continued to develop and refine the technology with strong support from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and the National Science Foundation. By 2004, the founding team had scaled up the technology glass panels of 16” x 16” in size. Federal funding from NREL and the Solar America Initiative enabled them to prove the viability of the technology. In 2006, AVA Solar, Inc. was formed with private funding from local angel investors to commercialize the technology.[4]
In early 2007, institutional investors discovered the company and the proprietary manufacturing process that had been developed.[5][6]
To date, Abound Solar[7] has raised approximately $150M to refine initial research and to fund the construction of its first factory in Longmont, Colorado. Major investors include: DCM, Invus Group,[8] GLG Partners, Technology Partners,[9] and Bohemian Companies.[10][11][12] The company has received a Department of Energy loan guarantee to support the expansion of manufacturing capacity to produce millions of solar panels annually (840 megawatts) for less than crystalline silicon modules cost.
Abound Solar produces cadmium telluride thin-film solar modules using a proprietary closed-space sublimation technology developed at Colorado State University.[13]
The unique semiconductor deposition technology features in-line deposition of the full semiconductor stack within a single vacuum chamber. A full PV module is created by taking a glass substrate with semiconductor and adding buss bars, back glass and a junction box. Abound’s process is distinguished by fast throughput (under 2 hours) and low capital costs (reportedly less than $1 / watt).
In April 2008, Abound Solar took possession of a Longmont, Colorado-area building previously used by Applied Films. Within weeks, preparations were made to renovate the facility and construct the largest thin-film solar module manufacturing facility in the United States.[14]
The company is currently ramping up production on its first full-scale production line with an annual capacity of 65 MW. When complete, the factory will have a capacity of 200 MW of production per year.
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