HSINCHU, June 25, 2012 /PRNewswire-Asia/ -- AU Optronics today announced that its solar solution brand, BenQ Solar, has obtained Japan Electrical Safety & Environment Technology Laboratories' certification and has become one of the few foreign companies worldwide officially awarded JET certification. BenQ Solar has been actively developing the Japanese solar market. Besides gaining JET certification, in order to fulfill specific local needs in Japan, BenQ solar has not only provided a small-sized high-efficiency solar module (GreenTriplex PM200M00) tailored to residential users, but also offered an all-black design high-efficiency solar module (GreenTriplex PM250M00) and an anti-salt mist corrosion solar module (EcoDuo PM240P00) for the commercial rooftop and utility market.
JET is an officially authorized laboratory institution in Japan and has been in charge of performing factory inspection and product testing for electronic products. It takes much time and is difficult to acquire JET certification due to the greater concern of Japanese consumers about electronic product safety and the huge demands in the Japanese domestic market. BenQ Solar's obtaining JET's solar module certification denotes BenQ Solar's products meet the highest standard of safety and are equipped with the capability to respond to world trends. In July, Japan is going to implement a new Feed-in-Tariff policy for renewable energy. The subsidies for renewable energy will be at higher rates than the subsidies in the other countries, and for BenQ Solar, which makes Japan one of the promising markets in Asia-Pacific area.
For Japanese residential user preferences for lightweight and rooftop design, BenQ Solar provides a flexible small-sized solar module (GreenTriplex PM200M00) which matches building rooftop sizes in order to be designed for optimized solar power systems and is also convenient for installation and maintenance. Considering Japan is surrounded by sea, BenQ Solar also provides a EcoDuo PM240P00 solar module which has passed the salt mist corrosion tests of IEC 61701. The module is able to maintain high-efficiency power output for even large solar power plants located in coastal regions. For Japanese who regard architecture as an aesthetic pursuit, BenQ Solar has customized an all-black high-efficiency solar module (GreenTriplex PM250M00) with elegant appearance, three bus-bar design, and higher efficiency power output.
BenQ Solar entered the Japanese solar market in 2009 and has cooperated with M.Setek, a leading polysilicon provider in Japan, and jointly invested in AUO SunPower and SunPower, an American leading solar cell company. With high-quality materials and cells, BenQ Solar's modules are able to maximize power conversion efficiency. Our vertically integrated solar value chain altogether better provides customers with world-class products and technologies.
BenQ Solar has successfully accomplished many large solar power plants projects in Europe, Asia and Africa. After obtaining JET certification, BenQ Solar will cooperate with more partners to provide Japanese customers with reliable, high-efficiency and eco-friendly solar products, and is continuing to expand its solar business in the Asian market.
About BenQ Solar
BenQ Solar is a division of AU Optronics Corp. AU Optronics manufactures and markets its PV products globally by using BenQ Solar as its solar product brand. BenQ Solar Business combined M.Setek, AUO crystal, and AUO SunPower to form a high-efficiency vertical solar value chain from polysilicon, ingot, wafer, solar cell, PV module and project business. BenQ Solar has successfully accomplished many large solar power plants projects in Europe, Asia and Africa. The company is capable of providing solar modules from Taiwan, China, Europe and the US and adopts "global operation, local delivery" model to provide worldwide customers with total solar solutions. Please visit BenQSolar.com.
About AU Optronics
AU Optronics Corp. (AUO) is one of the world's leading providers of display and solar total solutions. AUO offers a full range of panel sizes and comprehensive applications ranging from 1.2 inches to 71 inches. Based on its profound R&D and manufacturing experience, AUO continues to develop advanced display technologies of the next generation. AUO extended its market to the green energy industry in 2008. By building a vertically integrated high-efficiency solar value chain, AUO provides its customers with high-efficiency solar solutions. AUO now houses a staff of more than 45,000 employees, with global operations in Taiwan, Mainland China, the U.S., Japan, South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, Czech and Slovakia. Additionally, AUO is the first pure TFT-LCD manufacturer to be successfully listed at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). AUO has also been named to Dow Jones Sustainability World Index for two consecutive years from 2010 to 2011. AUO generated NT$379.7 billion (US$ 12.54 billion) in sales revenue in 2011. For more information, please visit AUO.com.
* 2011 year end revenue converted at an exchange rate of NTD30.27:USD1.
Safe Harbour Notice
AU Optronics Corp. ("AUO" or the "Company") (TAIEX: 2409; NYSE: AUO), a global leader of TFT-LCD panels, today announced the above news. Except for statements in respect of historical matters, the statements contained in this Release are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934. These forward-looking statements were based on our management's expectations, projections and beliefs at the time regarding matters including, among other things, future revenues and costs, financial performance, technology changes, capacity, utilization rates, yields, process and geographical diversification, future expansion plans and business strategy. Such forward looking statements are subject to a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties that can cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements, including risks related to the flat panel display industry, the TFT-LCD market, acceptance of and demand for our products, technological and development risks, competitive factors, and other risks described in the section entitled "Risk Factors" in our Form 20-F filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission on April 27th, 2012.
