Arizona-based First Solar Inc. has opened its $1.1 billion thin-film solar manufacturing plant in Lawrence County.
The plant is expected to employ 800 workers and create panels able to generate 3.5 gigawatts of vertically integrated solar manufacturing capacity.
“This represents a great day for First Solar and for Lawrence County because this production facility is destined to become a major player in the U.S. renewable energy market,” said Gov. Kay Ivey. “Moreover, the Alabama workers at this facility will help break the nation’s dependence on foreign-made solar panels and contribute to our energy independence.”
First Solar has three plants in Ohio and is building another, set to open next year, in Louisiana.
“This is the first of two fully vertically integrated solar manufacturing facilities that solidify the role of the Gulf Coast states in enabling America’s all-of-the-above energy strategy,” said Mark Widmar, CEO of First Solar. “This energy technology manufacturing facility produces American solar panels, with American-made components sourced from a supply chain that spans the country. The hundreds of people that operate this facility represent the next generation of American energy workers and are joined by thousands more steelworkers, glassworkers, miners, truck drivers, railroad workers, and others that enable our mission to support our country’s energy security.”
The plant converts sheets of glass into thin-film solar panels. First Solar describes it this way: “The Alabama facility’s entire solar value chain – equivalent to transformation from semiconductor to wafer to cell to module – operates under one roof, using one tightly controlled process with rigorous quality assurance and control.”
In addition, the plant will use “Alabama-sourced steel, smelted, rolled and fabricated within a 25-mile radius of the facility,” First Solar said in announcing the plant opening.
The company notes especially that it is bringing solar manufacturing to the U.S. from China. “First Solar is unique among the world’s largest solar manufacturers because it is the only U.S.-headquartered company and does not manufacture in China. The company’s operational manufacturing footprint in Ohio and Alabama and Louisiana represent over $4 billion in U.S. manufacturing investments,” the company says.
“First Solar’s $1.1 billion manufacturing facility in Lawrence County is likely the largest investment project ever undertaken in one of our rural counties, demonstrating that our rural communities are prepared to meet any challenge,” said Commerce Secretary Ellen McNair. “This is also a highly positive development for Alabama’s expanding green energy sector and strengthens our state’s growing leadership in the U.S. clean energy industry.”
