Intersolar North America Unveils 2008 Conference Content

SAN FRANCISCO, May. 20 /PRNewswire/ --

SAN FRANCISCO, May 20 /PRNewswire/ -- Solar Promotion International GmbH is pleased to announce details about its conference program for Intersolar North America at the Moscone Center West building and, lying directly next door, the Intercontinental Hotel in San Francisco, California. Intersolar North America 2008, taking place from July 15-17, will be the continent's premier event on photovoltaics, solar thermal and solar architecture.

The Intersolar North America conference will provide in-depth discussions on photovoltaic technology, solar thermal technology and building integrated technologies, as well as address financing, investments, materials issues and politics, through a series of specific technical workshops, panel discussions and presentations.

"Intersolar North America will be a prime opportunity to learn from the industry's brightest," said Solar Promotion International's chief executive, Markus Elsaesser. "The panels and workshops will focus on the most critical industry topics, and be organized by highly-regarded solar experts. This is to ensure Intersolar North America is as equally valuable a place to stay informed during a dynamic time for the industry, as it will be an opportunity to meeting and conducting business with a vast contingent of the international solar community," he continued.

Solar Promotion International GmbH has also announced the specific panel topics to compose the Intersolar North America conference sessions. They are:

Photovoltaic Track -- Innovative concepts for crystalline silicon and thin film cells & modules, -- Innovative concepts for absorber & collectors, -- System technology: inverters and off-grid systems, -- Large scale PV power plants, concentrating PV and tracking systems, -- Solar Gigawatts: Status & Perspectives of European and US markets Solar Thermal Track -- Solar thermal markets & trends for low temperature solar thermal technologies, -- Innovative concepts for absorbers & collectors, -- Concentrating and heat storage systems, -- Solar cooling and air conditioning, -- Building integrated technologies Workshops -- On Thursday July 17, Intersolar North America will host all-day workshops on solar thermal and photovoltaic systems and installations for all levels of experience.

In addition to the conference agenda, which occurs concurrently with the Intersolar North America exhibition on July 14, Intersolar North America will host two day-long seminars in conjunction with the Prometheus Institute and Greentech Media.

Concentrating Solar Technologies and Markets

This one-day seminar is designed to provide the most comprehensive analysis of the rapidly emerging concentrating solar thermal and PV markets. Drawing on recent research conducted by the Prometheus Institute and Greentech Media, this seminar takes a top-to-bottom approach to revealing the economics, technology, and market opportunity for both concentrating solar thermal (CST) and concentrating photovoltaic (CPV) technologies. Leading market analysts and industry experts will cover topics including:

-- CSP technologies and solutions, -- Markets for Concentrating Solar Power, -- CSP industry 2008, -- Understanding the economics of CSP solutions, -- Global experiences in CSP, -- A Global CSP market forecast

Solar Finance

This one-day seminar will bring together top market analysts and leaders in the renewable energy finance industry to provide the audience with detailed data and analysis of the complete range of financing solutions impacting the global solar market. Co-produced by the Prometheus Institute for Sustainable Development and Greentech Media, this seminar will include the following topics:

-- Global solar market outlook, -- Expanding commercial solar installations with the Power Purchase Agreement, -- Financing utility and industrial solar, -- Tax equity investment opportunities and strategies in solar projects, -- Financing residential solar

Solar Materials, Equipment & Technology (SMET) Conference

The focus of this conference is to create discussion about the current issues for the PV production and supplier industries, such as market development, material supply and delivery, standardisation, quality assurance, finance and technological developments. The conference will take current hot topics, trends and developments for material and component suppliers as its themes and will address the challenges facing the sector.

North American Photovoltaic Advanced Manufacturing Technology Conference

This conference will focus on the solutions, manufacturing equipment and technology that the industry is able to provide to the wafer, cell and module makers in order to become more competitive in the global energy market. Industry leaders will present their suggestions for improvements both for the fast developing thin-film as well as for bulk silicon production facilities. Different elements of the production process will be highlighted as will new technology breakthroughs.

Conference Committee

Today, Solar Promotion International GmbH announced its conference committee, a staff of accomplished industry veterans who will lead the panels and workshops covering important industry topics throughout the course of the four-day conference. The committee includes: Claudia Wentworth, Northern California Solar Energy Association (NorCal Solar); Charles Hornbrook, Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E); Christoph Fark, Schott Solarthermie GmbH; Eddy Blooken, SEMI Europe; Gerhard Stryi-Hipp, German Solar Industry Association (BSW-Solar); Prof. John Reynolds, American Solar Energy Society (ASES); Molly Sterkel, California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC); Ole Pigaard, Heliodyne Inc.; Paula Mints, Navigant Consulting; Philipp Kunze, Solaria Corporation; Sanford Miller, California Energy Commission (CEC); Stefan Morbe, German American Chamber of Commerce, Inc. (GACC); and Prof. Tonio Buonassisi, MIT Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Prof. Eicke Weber of the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE) will serve as the Intersolar North America conference chair.

"This assembly of talented industry veterans will greatly help mold the content of our conference and ensure we address those most critical industry issues with the insight, expertise and vision needed by today's solar professionals," said Prof. Eicke Weber.

About Intersolar:

The Intersolar brand is internationally recognized as the leading event for the solar energy industry. Intersolar Europe, previously held in Freiburg, Germany, has switched venues due to greater demand for space and is now held annually at the New Trade Fair Centre in Munich. Intersolar Europe is the world's largest solar exhibition with more than 1,000 exhibitors and an exhibition space of 818,000 square feet.

Solar Promotion International GmbH

Solar Promotion International GmbH, of Germany, organizes exhibitions and conferences worldwide for the solar industry. Founded in 2001, Solar Promotion promotes solar technologies around the world to help further their advancement and implementation into everyday use. Solar Promotion organizes events in the photovoltaic, solar thermal, solar architecture, building efficiency technologies and efficient pellet fuel technology branches. These events include: Intersolar Europe, Intersolar North America, Interpellets, the Solar Thermal Industry Forum and Photovoltaic Industry Forum, among others. For further information, visit http://www.intersolar.us.

Freiburg Management und Marketing International GmbH (FMMI)

Freiburg Management und Marketing International GmbH (FMMI) is owned and operated by the City of Freiburg and founded with the aim of promoting international cooperatives and organizing trade exhibitions and conferences relating to the economy, tourism, the environment and international city partnerships, at the behest of the City of Freiburg. "Green City Freiburg" is marketed worldwide to describe Freiburg's decades of expertise in solar technology, renewable energies and sustainable urban and traffic planning. FMMI's international activities strengthen and promote Freiburg as an economic hub. For further information, visit http://www.fwtm.freiburg.de

SEMI

SEMI is the global industry association serving the manufacturing supply chains for the microelectronic, display and photovoltaic industries. SEMI member companies are the engine of the future, enabling smarter, faster and more economical products that improve our lives. Since 1970, SEMI has been committed to helping members grow more profitably, create new markets and meet common industry challenges. SEMI maintains offices in Austin, Beijing, Brussels, Hsinchu, Moscow, San Jose, Seoul, Shanghai, Singapore, Tokyo, and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit http://www.semi.org.