Scheuten: two joint ventures

Scheuten is making significant investments in factories in the United States and Asia. AKD provided the necessary legal support.

In conjunction with its partners, Scheuten, the Venlo-based manufacturer of glass and solar panels, is investing US$400 million in a new silicium plant in Trenton, in the United States. The company's own capital accounts for $80 million of the investment. The new American manufacturing facility will guarantee Scheuten a supply of high quality silicium, the basic resource for making solar cells.

Scheuten Solar also plans to collaborate with the Taiwanese company Ritek to produce thin-film solar cells in Asia. The joint venture with the new thin film production operation represents an expansion of Scheuten's business activities. Up to now, the Limburg family firm has chiefly sold solar panels incorporating silicium-based solar cells. But it sees future growth in thin film technology, that requires less silicium,  exceeding that of traditional silicium cells.