The European Photovoltaic Industry Association (EPIA) celebrated its Annual General Meeting (AGM) last Thursday 26 June in Aix les Bains (France), Ernesto Macias became president of association succeeding Dr. Winfried Hoffmann in this position. He will remain president until the 2010 AGM.

The European Photovoltaic Industry Association (EPIA) celebrated its Annual General Meeting (AGM) last Thursday 26 June in Aix les Bains, one day prior to its annual national political event which was this year entitled: "Towards the development of the photovoltaic sector in France". On the occasion of the AGM, Ernesto Macias became president of the world's largest photovoltaic association succeeding Dr. Winfried Hoffmann in this position. He will remain president until the 2010 AGM.

The AGM is the yearly gathering of the assembly of members to provide new strategic directions and orientations to the association. This year the AGM gathered over 170 representatives of the photovoltaic industry from around the globe.

Building In-depth Industry Intelligence
Achievements from 2007 were presented as well as new strategic orientations aimed for the next 2 years. In particular, the results of a recent satisfaction survey carried out among members were presented. The survey results revealed that EPIA members are very satisfied with the work performed by the association and they made specific recommendations to position it as a High profile reference organisation in the PV sector, by:

1. Consolidating conditions for strong market development in the EU
2. Expanding Market Intelligence to selected emerging overseas markets
3. Further building an in-depth Industry Intelligence

Ernesto Macias, Communication and External Affairs General Manager at Isofotón, succeeding Dr. Winfried Hoffmann, will secure the EPIA presidency for the next two years until the 2010 AGM. He recalled the priorities of his presidency during the meeting: "The European industry needs to look further outside European borders and seize market opportunities existing in overseas markets. Also for the more than 1,5 billion people who still lack access to energy, solar electricity represents a huge opportunity to address the rural electrification challenge in developing countries".

EPIA AGM opening Major French Photovoltaic Symposium
The following day, a national photovoltaic symposium entitled "Towards the development of the photovoltaic sector in France" was organised and brought together over 500 participants. In order to allow a progressive and ambitious increase of the French market, professionals from the solar photovoltaic branch called to mind their recommendations during the symposium: For more information on the recommendations: http://www.epia.org/index.php?id=227.

About the European Photovoltaic Industry Association:

With over 170 Members drawn from across the entire solar electricity sector, the European Photovoltaic Industry Association represents over 95% of the European photovoltaic industry. EPIA members are present throughout the whole value-chain of the photovoltaic industry: from silicon, cells and module production to systems development. EPIA's mission is to deliver a distinct and valuable service driven from the strength of a single European photovoltaic voice.