About Dow Corning
News and Upcoming Events
2009.11.04
Dow Corning supports European Commission’s priority on alternative energy research
Dow Corning, a global leader in silicon
based technologies that power the solar industry, has welcomed a call by the
European Commission for a €50 billion increase in funding for clean energy
research over the next decade.
The Commission is aiming to accelerate its Strategic Energy Technology Plan
(SET Plan) with a greater focus on the development and deployment of
cost-effective low carbon technologies. Research and development and a
partnership between business, the public sector and researchers are essential
in order to develop the technologies to secure EU energy supply and ensure the
competitiveness of the European Community member nations.
As a leader in developing the technologies that sustain the solar energy
industry, Dow Corning supports legislative and governmental initiatives that
can help clean energy become a more affordable option for the future. “Solar
energy is a clean, efficient and readily available technology that, with the
right support, can help transform the world’s energy, environmental and
economic future,” said Eric Peeters, Vice President,Dow Corning Solar Solutions. “We commend the Commission for
highlighting the critical role that innovation will play in accelerating
efforts to make solar energy a viable alternative to traditional energy
sources.”
Dow Corning’s silicon-based materials are used in solar cell manufacturing, solar module assembly and
installation. In the past five years, Dow Corning together with its
joint ventures at the Hemlock Semiconductor Group have announced investments of more
than $5 billion to research and develop as well as to expand production of
materials critical to the solar industry.
The company’s research and development efforts are designed to help the
solar industry become even more economically competitive with conventional
energy sources as they work towards achieving grid parity.
Dow Corning supports the Commission’s view that co-operation with industry
will be essential for the future. The proposed Strategic Energy
Technology Plan (SET-Plan) seeks to combine EU and national resources with
Public-Private Partnerships in a series of European Industrial Initiatives in
areas including solar and wind.
“The opportunity and need for solar energy is so great, a spectrum of
solar technologies will need to flourish and industry standards developed
through increased public-private partnerships created,” said Peeters.
About Hemlock Semiconductor Group
The Hemlock
Semiconductor Group (Hemlock Semiconductor) is comprised of two joint
ventures: Hemlock Semiconductor Corporation and Hemlock Semiconductor,
L.L.C. The companies are joint ventures among Dow Corning
Corporation, Shin-Etsu Handotai, and Mitsubishi Materials Corporation.
Hemlock Semiconductor is a leading provider of polycrystalline silicon and
other silicon-based products used in the manufacturing of semiconductor
devices, and solar cells and modules. Hemlock Semiconductor began its
Michigan operations in 1961 and broke ground at its Tennessee location in
2009.
About Dow Corning
Dow Corning provides performance-enhancing solutions to
serve the diverse needs of more than 25,000 customers worldwide. A global
leader in silicones, silicon-based technology
and innovation, Dow Corning offers more than 7,000 products and services
via the company’s Dow Corning® and XIAMETER® brands.
Dow Corning is a joint venture equally owned by The Dow Chemical Company
and Corning, Incorporated. More than half of Dow Corning’s annual sales
are outside the United States.
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representatives.
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