Apr 28 2005
Konarka Technologies, Inc., an innovator in developing and commercializing power plastics that convert light to energy, today announced the Company opened a new center of European operations in Nuremberg, Germany. The new facility, which includes research and development laboratories, enables Konarka to expand its efforts to bring light-activated power plastic to Europe, where the demand for renewable energy technologies is high.
"For many years now, European countries have been encouraging the success of renewable energy with aggressive public policy and economic initiatives. Germany, in particular, has been at the forefront of implementing solar energy solutions, recently becoming the premier country in the world for solar," said Howard Berke, chairman and chief executive officer, Konarka. "With a significant portion of our venture capital coming from European investors and our longstanding partnerships with leaders such as Siemens and Electricité de France, we are committed to Europe. The new headquarters marks a milestone in our expansion and establishes a central base for maintaining our close relationships and preparing for future growth."
In September 2004, Konarka acquired Siemens' organic photovoltaic research activities, establishing the Company's initial presence in Germany. Leveraging the strong ties of Konarka's German team members to the local energy community, Konarka Technologies GmbH is located in the Energy Technology Center, a business incubator and science research center, in Nuremberg. The energy sector comprises nearly one-third of Nuremberg's regional economy, and the concentration of energy technology, industrial automation and power electronics industries provides a skilled labor pool, making Nuremburg one of Europe's top locations for energy companies.
Konarka has additional research and development subsidiaries in Linz, Austria and Zug, Switzerland. Since its inception, the Company has worked to develop cooperative relationships with Europe's leading institutions for renewable energy, including major corporations, clean energy investors, universities and government agencies.
http://www.konarkatech.com