MONTGOMERY, AL—First Solar Inc. has opened its new $1.1 billion, vertically integrated thin-film solar panel assembly plant here.
The facility, which adds 3.5 gigawatts (GW) of manufacturing capacity in the United States, is expected to create more than 800 manufacturing jobs in the state.
At full capacity, the new facility brings the company’s domestic manufacturing capacity to almost 11 GW and its global capacity to more than 21 GW. First Solar is also constructing a $1.1 billion, 3.5-GW facility in Louisiana, which is expected to be commissioned in the second half of 2025. The company expects to have more than 14 GW of annual production capacity in the United States and 25 GW globally by the end of 2026.
First Solar’s advanced, highly differentiated manufacturing process allows it to transform a sheet of glass into ready-to-ship thin-film solar panels in approximately four hours. The Alabama facility’s entire solar value chain—equivalent to the transformation from semiconductor to wafer to cell to module—operates under one roof, using one tightly controlled process.
The modules produced in Lawrence County will use steel that has been smelted, rolled and fabricated within a 25-mile radius of the facility.
First Solar is unique among the world’s largest solar manufacturers because it is the only U.S.-headquartered company and because it does not manufacture in China.
