First Solar broke ground on its third manufacturing plant in Ohio this week. The new 3.3 GWdc facility is scheduled to open in the first half of 2023 with an investment of US$680 million. The new plant will produce the upcoming Series 7 modules and bring First Solar’s total annual production capacity in Ohio to 6 GWdc, which is believed to make it the largest fully vertically integrated solar manufacturing complex outside of China. Considering all the political and practical issues facing the import of solar panels, the timing is perfect.
“Today, we are working hard to revitalize the US solar manufacturing industry and ensure the safety of the critical clean energy supply chain, because reliable access to competitive and efficient solar panels is critical to our country’s future. Solar panels are the next crude oil , We cannot rely on the supply of hostile countries,” said Mark Widmar, CEO of First Solar. “We are investing in research and development to expand the scale of American clean technology innovation, ensuring that the unique American solar technology developed in Ohio maintains a competitive advantage. We are going one step further and producing next-generation solar panels designed and manufactured in the United States for the US solar industry. .”
The ceremony included US Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh and several state representatives: Ohio Lieutenant Governor Jon Husted; US representatives Bob Latta (OH-05) and Marcy Kaptur (OH-09). In addition to the 1,600 employees currently employed by First Solar in Ohio, the facility is expected to create more than 700 permanent jobs.
“This factory represents confidence and optimism in the future of our country,” Walsh said at the groundbreaking ceremony. “First Solar’s ​​new plant in Ohio is a model of President Biden’s vision of maintaining America’s competitiveness by investing in clean energy and creating good jobs. The facility not only promotes innovative manufacturing for a sustainable future, First Solar has also adopted Skills training, competitive salaries, and generous benefits invest in its workers. Empowering all American workers is our way to rebuild a better economy and win the future.”
First Solar has always been positioned at larger-scale solar sites, and is now vigorously advancing the DG solar market. This is an on-demand webinar about the company and how to use its modules to design C&I projects.
First Solar was founded in 1999 and has been manufacturing operations in the state since it began commercial production at its original Perrysburg plant in 2002, when it produced 1.5 megawatt (MW) DC modules and employed 150 employees. Since then, the company has invested more than $2 billion to expand its manufacturing operations in Ohio, and when it commissioned its second factory in 2019, the state became the largest photovoltaic solar manufacturing base in the Western Hemisphere.
The facility will be one of the most advanced of its kind in the solar industry. Once it reaches full capacity, First Solar can produce one module approximately every 2.75 seconds at its three factories in Ohio. The facility combines highly skilled workers with Industry 4.0 architecture, machine-to-machine communication, artificial intelligence, and Internet of Things connections to produce a higher degree of automation, precision, and continuous improvement.
This 1.8 million square foot factory is expected to produce enhanced thin-film photovoltaic modules for the U.S. utility-scale solar market, which is expected to have higher efficiency and wattage in a larger form factor. The additional production capacity of this new facility (if available) is also expected to help alleviate the current challenges facing the global shipping market by reducing the transoceanic gap between international supply and domestic demand.