- Facility part of approximately half-billion dollar investment
in US thin film R&D infrastructure
- Investment expected to reinforce America’s strategic leadership
in thin film PV
- Announces new thin film world record with 23.1% efficient CdTe
cells
First Solar, Inc. (Nasdaq: FSLR) today commissioned a new
research and development (R&D) innovation center in Lake
Township, Ohio, believed to be the largest facility of its kind in
the Western Hemisphere. The Jim Nolan Center for Solar Innovation
is dedicated to the late James “Jim” F. Nolan, a former member of
First Solar’s Board of Directors and the architect of the company’s
cadmium telluride (CdTe) semiconductor platform.
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First Solar today commissioned a new
research and development (R&D) innovation center in Lake
Township, Ohio, believed to be the largest facility of its kind in
the Western Hemisphere. The facility covers 1.3 million square feet
and includes a high-tech pilot manufacturing line allowing for the
production of full-sized prototypes of thin film and tandem PV
modules. (Photo: Business Wire)
The facility covers 1.3 million square feet and includes a
high-tech pilot manufacturing line allowing for the production of
full-sized prototypes of thin film and tandem PV modules. Prior to
the commissioning of the Jim Nolan Center, First Solar utilized a
manufacturing line at its Perrysburg facility for its late-stage
product development efforts. This arrangement limited the
flexibility for development efforts and created constraints when
mission-critical tools had to go offline. By resolving these
limitations and constraints, the new facility is expected to
accelerate innovation cycles.
"Thin films are the next technological battleground for the
solar industry because they are key to commercializing tandem
devices, which are anticipated to be the next disruption in
photovoltaics," said Mark Widmar, chief executive officer, First
Solar. "While the United States leads the world in thin film PV,
China is racing to close the innovation gap. We expect that this
crucial investment in R&D infrastructure will help maintain our
nation's strategic advantage in thin film, accelerating the cycles
of innovation needed to ensure that the next disruptive,
transformative solar technology will be American-made."
The Jim Nolan Center is part of an approximately half-billion
dollar investment by First Solar in R&D infrastructure, and the
company expects to also commission a perovskite development line at
its Perrysburg, Ohio, campus in the second half of 2024. The
company, which has invested almost $2 billion in R&D, operates
laboratories in Santa Clara, California, and Perrysburg, Ohio, in
the US, and Uppsala in Sweden. Significantly, First Solar’s
California Technology Center (CTC) in Santa Clara recently achieved
a 23.1% efficient CdTe cell, a new world record certified by the
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).
First Solar, founded in 1999 and celebrating 25 years of
operations this year, is unique among the world's largest solar
manufacturers for being the only US-headquartered company and for
scaling the production of thin film solar panels. The company
exited 2023 with 16.6 gigawatts (GW) of annual global nameplate
manufacturing capacity and is expected to achieve over 25 GW of
capacity by 2026. First Solar expects to commission new
manufacturing facilities in Alabama in the second half of 2024 and
Louisiana in the second half of 2025, bringing its total US
nameplate capacity to 14 GW by 2026.
The company's ongoing and planned investments in the R&D
infrastructure are projected to create approximately 300 new jobs
by 2025, the majority of which will be located at the Jim Nolan
Center. First Solar's investments in US manufacturing and R&D
are believed to make it the most significant enabler of American
jobs among solar manufacturers.
According to a recent study conducted by the University of
Louisiana at Lafayette and commissioned by First Solar, the company
supported an estimated 16,245 direct, indirect, and induced jobs in
2023, representing approximately $1.6 billion in annual labor
income. As First Solar grows to an expected 14 GW in annual US
nameplate capacity by 2026, it is forecast to support an estimated
30,060 direct, indirect, and induced jobs across the country,
representing $2.8 billion in annual labor income. The study
projects that every direct job First Solar supports in 2026 will
support 7.3 jobs nationwide.
About First Solar, Inc.
First Solar is a leading American solar technology company and
global provider of responsibly produced eco-efficient solar modules
advancing the fight against climate change. Developed at R&D
labs in California and Ohio, the company’s advanced thin film PV
modules represent the next generation of solar technologies,
providing a competitive, high-performance, lower-carbon alternative
to conventional crystalline silicon PV modules. From raw material
sourcing and manufacturing through end-of-life module recycling,
First Solar’s approach to technology embodies sustainability and a
responsibility towards people and the planet. For more information,
please visit www.firstsolar.com.
For First Solar Investors
This press release contains various “forward-looking statements”
which are made pursuant to safe harbor provisions of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking
statements include, but are not limited to, statements concerning
First Solar’s expectations that i) this innovation center will
fast-track validation of technology and process; ii) this
innovation center will optimize rates of learning and reduce
commercial production line downtime; iii) the company will have
over 25 GW of annual global nameplate capacity and 14 GW of US
nameplate capacity by 2026; iv) the company will commission its new
manufacturing facilities in Alabama in the second half of 2024 and
Louisiana in the second half of 2025; and v) the company’s
investments in R&D infrastructure will create approximately 300
new jobs by 2025. These forward-looking statements are often
characterized by the use of words such as “estimate,” “expect,”
“anticipate,” “project,” “plan,” “intend,” “seek,” “believe,”
“forecast,” “foresee,” “likely,” “may,” “should,” “goal,” “target,”
“might,” “will,” “could,” “predict,” “continue” and the negative or
plural of these words and other comparable terminology.
Forward-looking statements are only predictions based on First
Solar’s current expectations and First Solar’s projections about
future events and therefore speak only as of the date of this
release. You should not place undue reliance on these
forward-looking statements. First Solar undertakes no obligation to
update any of these forward-looking statements for any reason,
whether as a result of new information, future developments or
otherwise. These forward-looking statements involve known and
unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause
First Solar’s actual results, levels of activity, performance, or
achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied
by these statements. These factors include, but are not limited to,
the matters discussed under the captions “Risk Factors” and
“Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and
Results of Operations” of our most recent Annual Report on Form
10-K and our subsequently filed Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, as
supplemented by our other filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission. This press release contains references to data and
information generated by an economic study conducted by the
Kathleen Babineaux Blanco Public Policy Center at the University of
Louisiana at Lafayette. The economic study is based on numerous
assumptions, estimates and other data as more fully described in
the report summarizing the study’s findings, which is available at
www.firstsolar.com/USeconomy.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240718000923/en/
Media Reuven Proença
First Solar Media reuven.proenca@firstsolar.com
Investors Richard
Romero First Solar Investor Relations
investor@firstsolar.com
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