Spain's Rioglass sees its future in the field of solar energy but without losing sight of its origins as a manufacturer of auto components. "The solar energy business is much more profitable than automobiles. We are taking advantage of what we have learned in the auto sector & putting it into practice in solar, but without forgetting that our main business comes from vehicles", said company founder & president José María Villanueva. Rioglass hopes that in the next financial year half of its turnover will come from the sale of components for solar energy production, compared to the current figure of 28.5%. It is preparing to open its second factory to make glass for solar power generation. The first plant was opened in 2007 in Lena (northern Spain) through RioGlass Solar, a venture with technology company Abengoa in which Rioglass has an 80% stake. "We have already sold all the output of the Lena plant - 500,000 mirrors or enough for three 50MW power plants - for this financial year", said Mr. Villanueva, "so we have decided to set up another plant in Asturias which should be operational at the beginning of next year". The investment in the plant will be EUR 24 million, similar to the Lena facility.
