Stellar PV utilises advanced mono-crystal silicon ingot pulling, precision squaring, and slicing processes to produce high-quality wafers designed for the production of highly efficient solar panels.
Our solar wafer manufacturing facility will play a pivotal role in the development of the Australian solar panel ecosystem, bridging the gap between raw material processing and the production of efficient, high-quality solar panels.
Stellar PV is positioned to reduce environmental impacts, enhance energy security, and help foster economic growth.
Ted is the Principal of Stellar PV, and brings decades of experience in developing globally significant solar manufacturing plants.
Ted was a founding member of Dr Martin Green’s research team in the 1980s when they first developed and commercialised solar cell technology.
He also worked at the Solar Energy Research centre in the 1980s and 1990s, when the first Australian solar panels were developed.
Ted then joined with Samuel Yang and Dr Zhengrong Shi to establish the first major solar manufacturing facility in China with Suntech.
Shortly thereafter, Ted and Samuel established JA Solar, which was listed in 2007 on the NASDAQ, and was the largest solar manufacturer in the world at the time.
Ted then moved to Taiwan and started Sunrise Global Energy, which is now part of SAS.
He has since co-founded various solar farms in Italy, and cell and module lines in Taiwan, Canada, and the USA.
Since 2008, Louise has worked in a number of C-suite roles at private equity funds and family offices in Sydney and London.
With extensive start-up operational experience, Louise has strong leadership, strategic, and financial expertise. She also has specialist global tax and legal structuring experience.
Louise is an Australian CPA and GAICD.
Budi completed his PhD at UNSW under Prof. Stuart Wenham, and was part of the team who transferred UNSW’s solar technology to China and other countries.
Budi was CTO at SAS, the large Taiwanese solar panel manufacturer, during the 2010s.
Budi recently advised on a new solar cell and wafer factory in Taiwan, and is currently advising on the development of the first solar cell line in the US for Silfab Inc.
Budi and Ted have worked closely together on various projects.
My solar journey started forty-three years ago when Martin Green asked me to join his PV research facility at the University of NSW.
Back in those days, we had to beg, borrow and steal to get the program started and to transfer the technology to the initial R&D solar panels, which were made right here in Sydney.
Our ground-breaking discoveries in Cell Efficiency Technologies and ability to develop that into viable solar panels created the roadmap for solar as the significant, global, renewable energy source it has become.
At the time, we could see the benefits of Chinese production, so we helped develop large-scale solar manufacturing facilities there with Suntech, Nanjing PV Tech, and JA Solar. These pioneering companies kick-started the globally important solar industry that we know today.
We tried to bring the technology home to Australia in the late 2000s, but were told by the incumbent ministers to: ‘Go back to China, we don’t do manufacturing in Australia anymore!’
So, we all moved to Taiwan and have since started multiple PV factories in Taiwan, North America, and Germany.
Fast forward to the present… Stellar PV was established in 2023 to bring the old team back together to leverage our global success in the solar industry back home in Australia.
We’re excited to be building Stellar PV’s large-scale silicon ingot and wafer facility in Australia with such a globally experienced team.
Photo: Members of the original UNSW led by Prof. Martin Green (front centre). Ted Szpitalak (left, second from top)
Picture courtesy UNSW Archives.