Robert Tang Yuk, managing director of TYE Manufacturing Company Ltd, wants to partner with the T&T Government to create what he has labelled "a new economic space" by developing a solar industrial park. Tang Yuk, chairman of Solar Industry Technologies Ltd (SiTeK)-a business development company formed five years ago to focus on business opportunities in renewable energy and the manufacturing of photovoltaic modules in Trinidad-has submitted a proposal to the Government.
"We want to partner; our focus is not on a project, but rather a new economic space. Our focus is on building new economic spaces.
"Photovoltaics (PV) just happens to be, we think, a wonderful opportunity. We're hoping we can move on this feasibility plan." He delivered a presentation on the Opportunities in Renewable Energy: PV Systems, on June 17 at the Trade and Investment Convention at the Hyatt Regency Trinidad hotel, Port-of-Spain. Speaking before an audience that included Frank Look Kin, technical adviser to the Minister of Energy and Energy Affairs, Tang Yuk, an electrical engineer, outlined much of the work SiTeK has done so far. "We've done a lot of assessment in terms of the markets, the players, the feed stock, the supply chain, etc, and we think we found enough to convince us to look deeper. "We formed some strategic relationships with international players.
One of the largest engineering technology equipment supplier for integrated PV and silicon. They are supplying more than 50 per cent of the market today. "A relationship with a construction company that was responsible for more than 50 per cent of Pt Lisas construction. Strategic relationships with float glass manufacturers who can help us evaluate our a bility in T&T. Relationship with the supply chain partners." He said that SiTeK-which has directors from power generation, manufacturing and energy-is looking at exploiting the manufacture of PV. He said the next steps are to get a deep understanding of what this industry can do for T&T, conduct technical feasibilities, environmental impact assessments, determine cost structures, do commercial analysis, study regional competitiveness, work out marketing plans and access project financing.
Concept
Tang Yuk said SiTeK's concept is to co-locate three key industries in one area:
1. Silicon industry
2. Integrated PV industry
3. Glass or float glass industry
What are the advantages in doing that?
"There's a lot of handling, moving large pieces of glass. In the United States, glass goes from east coast to west coast. That is more expensive than shipping panels from Trinidad to the US.
"We are very, very fortunate we're on an island. Sand will come here by barge. It is the most economical way to transport bulk cargo. Our inputs will come from the region. It's shipped by bulk. "They are processed here in one co-located location, taking advantage of energy, skills, etc, and moving towards building competitiveness in high-tech manufacturing. Tang Yuk showed his audience slides of world-size plants. "You'd see plants, when we talk about silicon refining, of just under 10,000 tonnes a year. "We're saying that if we are even going to think about wanting to be in this industry, we have to be thinking world scale.
"In terms of the output of PV, we're thinking one gigawatt plant, may be two of them, exploiting different types of technology. "The second very important concept is the concept of regional clustering. That's taking advantage of regional resources, capabilities and developing a competitive cluster. "If we can do that, and we have some very, very unique circumstances, it's very difficult for the world to compete, including China. "In fact, silicon refining alone would be a very competitive industry for us, just based on our energy costs, and China would be interested in that refined silicon. "The problem with that is that silicon refining on its own is going to be just another gas-based industry.
"Unless we understand that we need to exploit the entire value chain, and develop downstream capabilities and develop new skills sets, then what we will be faced with is another gas-based or energy-based industry," Tang Yuk said.
Strategic bets
Tang Yuk said Harvard University's Prof Ricardo Hausmann, who did some work for the Inter-American Development Bank in Caricom, argued that if there are no unique or close trees to jump to, then strategic bets is what a country needs to diversify its economy. Tang Yuk described the solar park project as an interesting strategic bet. "It just turns out it's in renewable energy."
Financing
"Of course, we're evaluating this concept of a solar investment fund for local and regional participation.
"We have come up with the concept. We have been presenting it all over Trinidad to anybody who would listen. We're not an investor team. We're on Team T&T." Answering his own question about where would the financing for the project come from, Tang Yuk said, "Our philosophy is if there are good, bankable projects, then financing will find its way." He raised his own questions:
Is this solar industrial park project bankable?
Could it be viable?
And, if so, what are the risks?
He said the German Scientific Advisory Board has predicted that, by 2040, solar power would be the cheapest form of power. And, that by the end of this century, 50 per cent of power generated will come from solar power. "It's less than one per cent today. It is extremely significant growth. "Even if you don't believe that, ten per cent, 15 per cent of global power by solar is extremely explosive growth market we're looking at in the next decade."
Inputs/products
Tang Yuk said Guyana has very large deposits of very pure silica sand: low iron content, which is "excellent" for glass manufacturing. "There's limestone in the region. There's aluminium in the region. There's industrial chemicals because we have such a vibrant petrochemical industry. "What can you do with that? Intermediate products: refined silicon. And that's moving from metallurgical grade silicon to what we call polysilicon or solar-grade silicon. It's a purification process and it is refining. "We can also manufacture ultra clear float glass, one of the components that you may need for PV, and it is also a commodity that can be sold and exported for various types of applications, and then aluminium extrusion." This is a very small type of the downstream products you can manufacture:
• Solar PV panels
• Energy efficient glazing
• Solar water heaters
• Concentrated solar power
The value chain
He showed a slide of two clear and distinct industries. One is silicon refining. A 6,000 tonne plant in Oregon in the United States that takes metallurgical grade silicon and refining it, solar grade or polysilicon. Another slide showed an integrated PV plant, which takes the polysilicon, wafers, solar cells, solar modules. "What's happening in the world today: silicon plants are in one area. They go to areas where energy is very competitive, because it is an energy-intensive process. The integrated PV plants have been tending to move towards where the market is. "China has been moving really quickly with this. They have been very aggressive with regard to low-cost PV module manufacturing. "There's manufacturing in pretty much all of the developed world: Europe, North America, Japan. One of the largest investments we surveyed by REC, that's in Singapore." REC opened a US$2.5 billion solar manufacturing plant in Singapore in November 2010.
Environmental issues
Tang Yuk showed a slide of a 300 tonne a day, float glass plant with a furnace, and, of course, a smoke stack. "There is some emission, just like CaribGlass or any other type of operation like that. It's a very, very clean industry. A float glass plant in Germany is right next to a residential area. "Silicon refining is a closed loop system. There are no emissions." What can you do with float glass? "You can do energy-efficient glazing. You can use it in a plethora of products. It's an industry on its own. It could be used as inputs to PV module manufacturing."
Employment profile
Tang Yuk said Phase One of the project is likely to have more than 4,500 permanent jobs, 3,000 construction jobs, and another 9,000 indirect jobs.
TTMA renews call for non-energy growth
The T&T Manufacturers' Association (TTMA) has said it welcomed President Maxwell Richards' call for increased attention to be placed on the non-energy sector, particularly the manufacturing sector, made during his address at Monday's ceremonial opening of Parliament. The TTMA also said it supported calls for the streamlining of government series, removal of bureaucracy, the facilitation of business, the necessary legislature to enhance the competitiveness and the ease of doing business to achieve this developmental goal. In a statement issued Tuesday, the TTMA said it has consistently advocated for measures that would increase the long-term competitiveness of the manufacturing sector. Those measures include investments in renewable energy with the development of solar photovoltaic technology and recycling. The business lobby reiterated its call for the passing of the private sector version of the Beverage Container Bill to expedite this.
About TYE Manufacturing
Tang Yuk's company, TYE Manufacturing, based in Caroni, was formed in 1984 with the purchase of the assets of GTE Sylvania.
The company manufactures:
• motor control centres
• electrical switchgear
• meter sockets
• meter centres
• load centres
• fluorescent lighting fixtures
• custom lighting fixtures
• outlet boxes and covers
• trunking bus ducts
• cable trays
TYE Manufacturing exports to 20 countries in the region, including Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Panama, Venezuela and Canada.
TYE Manufacturing exports to 20 countries in the region, including Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Panama, Venezuela and Canada.