Press release
First Solar to Invest up to $1.2 Billion in Scaling Production of American-Made Responsible Solar by 4.4 GW
Announces plan to invest up to $1 billion in new, 3.5 GWDC manufacturing facility in the US SoutheastExisting Northwest Ohio footprint to be expanded by 0.9
About this update from First Solar, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"Announces plan to invest up to $1 billion in new, 3.5 GWDC manufacturing facility in the US SoutheastExisting Northwest Ohio footprint to be expanded by 0.9 GWDC with $185 million upgradeExpects to have over 3,000 direct employees in four states, while supporting an estimated 15,000 indirect and induced jobs by 2025 TEMPE, Ariz., Aug. 30, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- First Solar, Inc. (Nasdaq: FSLR) today announced that it plans to invest up to $1.2 billion in scaling production of American-made, responsibly-produced photovoltaic (PV) solar modules, directly supporting the country’s transition to a decarbonized future and enabling the fight against climate change. The investment is forecast to expand the company’s ability to produce American-made solar modules for the US solar market to over 10 gigawatts (GW)DC by 2025. As part of its push to scale US production of solar modules, the company intends to build its fourth, fully vertically integrated domestic factory, with an annual capacity of 3.5 GWDC, in the US Southeast. First Solar, the only US-headquartered company among the world’s ten largest solar manufacturers, expects to invest up to $1 billion in the new factory, which, contingent upon permitting and pending approval of various federal, state, regional, and local incentives, is expected to commence operations in 2025. Additionally, the company will invest $185 million in upgrading and expanding its Northwest Ohio manufacturing footprint, currently the largest vertically-integrated complex of its kind in the Western Hemisphere, by 0.9 GWDC. As part of its plans, First Solar will invest in expanding the capacity of its two operating facilities in Perrysburg and Lake Township, Ohio, by 0.6 GWDC to 3.6 GWDC of annual Series 6 module capacity. The company will also expand its third Ohio factory, expected to be commissioned in the first half of 2023, to 3.5 GWDC of annual Series 7 module capacity. The expansion will increase First Solar’s total investment in its Ohio manufacturing facilities to over $3 billion, with a cumulative annual production capacity of over 7 GWDC by 2025. First Solar estimates that the new investment will add at least 850 new manufacturing jobs, taking its total number of direct jobs in the US to over 3,000 people in four states by 2025, which is believed to make it the largest employer in the American sol...