China solar panel consortium to establish distribution centers in the United States

A consortium of 30 Chinese companies in the solar panel industry is setting up a U.S. sales hub in Eugene, the group’s president, Ocean Yuan, told The Register-Guard on Wednesday.The group, named Centron Solar, has leased a 25,000-square-foot warehouse in west Eugene, has 10 high-level managers on board and has ambitious plans to grow to 200 to 300 employees in a year, Yuan said.

The group probably also will set up one or two solar panel assembly lines in Eugene, creating about 50 “green” jobs. Those positions would pay about $20 an hour, including benefits, he said.The group’s members — mature manufacturers with proven technologies — have banded together to serve the vast potential market for affordable solar panels in the United States, Yuan said.

“Instead of coming in here by themselves and confusing the market with company names that the average American can’t even pronounce, we decided to combine forces and create an easy-to-pronounce, easy-to-remember name, which is Centron Solar,” Yuan said.Eugene Mayor Kitty Piercy said she had met with the group’s representatives a couple of times, but hadn’t spoken with them recently.

Of course, we’re very interested in solar,” she said. “We believe it’s right for Eugene and right for our community energy goals.”Piercy said that if Centron Solar does end up creating hundreds of jobs in Eugene, “it would be terrific. It would be wonderful. We’ve been really trying to encourage solar development here.”A couple of other solar businesses besides Centron Solar have expressed interest in Eugene, Piercy said. “We’ve been following all the leads we get.”Solar panel manufacture uses technologies similar to semiconductor manufacture. When Hynix closed its computer-chip plant in west Eugene last year, eliminating 1,000 jobs, it set off speculation that a solar manufacturer might take up residence there.

Jul. 19, 2009