Qatar Solar Technologies achieves two million man hours without lost time incident

Dr Khalid Klefeekh Al Hajri, Chairman and CEO of QSTec, commented on the occasion, "As QSTec rises to meet the growing demand within the GCC and the world for solar technologies and applications, we remain firmly committed to ensuring the health and safety of all of our staff, contractors and society.

"This is a commendable achievement and the venture team, the contractors and all staff involved in the construction of this plant are to be congratulated for reaching this milestone," added Dr Al Hajri.

QSTec is building a polysilicon production plant in Ras Laffan Industrial City. Initially the plant will produce 8,000 metric tons of polysilicon per year (MTPY) and it is designed to expand as demand grows.

Polysilicon is the essential building block of the world's most efficient solar energy technologies. It harnesses solar power by being converted into ingots, wafers, cells and the solar panels that produce solar energy.

Built on 1.2 million square meters of land, the plant can expand polysilicon capacity to 45,000 MTPY and has been designed to seamlessly incorporate ingots, wafers, cell and module manufacturing facilities.

It is a major milestone in the company's "Zero Harm" initiative, which aims for zero lost time incidents and constant safety vigilance on the part of all staff and contractors at the plant construction site.

QSTec aims to become one of the world's leading integrated solar companies, with its products used locally in Qatar and exported globally, ensuring a sustainable industry for Qatar whilst reducing greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. The company is a joint venture between Qatar Foundation SolarWorld AG and the Qatar Development Bank.

In October 2012, Qatar announced that it will generate 1.8 Gigawatts of solar power by 2014 as part of the vision to generate 20% of the country's total energy requirements through solar power.

"As one of the key organisations dedicated to building a brand new industry of solar energy in Qatar, we at Qatar Solar Technologies are extremely proud to support this promise wholeheartedly and meet its requirements," said Dr Al Hajri.

"QSTec is a strong advocate of the 2030 Qatar National Vision and will seize every opportunity that will turn this vision into a reality - beginning with the manufacture of polysilicon, the key ingredient of the world's most efficient solar panels, and expanding through to the manufacturing and installation of solar modules and solutions," Dr Al Hajri added.