News: Photovoltaics
17 November 2022
Intersect Power orders 4.9GW more First Solar PV modules, for 2025-2029 delivery
First Solar Inc of Tempe, AZ, USA has entered into agreements to supply an additional 4.9GWDC of its cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin-film photovoltaic (PV) solar modules to Intersect Power LLC, taking the total ordered this year to 7.3GWDC after an agreement for 2.4GWDC signed in July.
Of the latest 4.9GWDC, a deal for 1GWDC was signed prior to First Solar’s third-quarter 2022 earnings call in October, followed by subsequent deal for the remaining 3.9GWDC.
Intersect’s orders this year will see a combination of First Solar’s Series 6 Plus and Series 7 modules deployed in its solar, storage and green hydrogen projects coming online across the USA from 2025 to 2029.
“We have an unprecedented opportunity to decarbonize our economy while simultaneously bolstering our manufacturing sector and providing clean energy security,” says Intersect Power’s CEO Sheldon Kimber. “First Solar’s responsibly produced, high-performance modules are the cornerstone of our commitment to American technology and workers,” he adds.
Prior to 2022, Intersect Power had placed orders for a total of 4.1GWDC of modules in deals signed in 2019 and 2021. The latest transaction is expected to solidify its position as the world’s largest buyer and operator of First Solar’s PV modules, with an estimated deployed capacity of 11.4GWDC by 2029.
“Intersect Power was one of the early pioneers of long-term, multi-year procurement and has benefitted from the certainty of supply and stable pricing that this approach delivers,” says First Solar’s chief commercial officer Georges Antoun.
Designed and developed at its R&D centers in California and Ohio, First Solar’s thin-film PV modules are said to set industry benchmarks for quality, durability, reliability, design and environmental performance. The modules are claimed to have the lowest carbon and water footprint of any commercially available PV technology.
Additionally, First Solar’s thin-film semiconductor, integrated manufacturing process and tightly controlled supply chain helps to eliminate the risk of exposure to solar supply chains identified by the US Department of Labor’s 2022 List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor as being tainted by forced labor. First Solar is the only company among the ten largest solar manufacturers globally to be a member of the Responsible Business Alliance (RBA), the world’s largest industry coalition dedicated to supporting the rights and well-being of workers and communities in the global supply chain. The firm is also the first PV manufacturer to have its product included in the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT) global registry for sustainable electronics.
As the only US-headquartered company among the world’s largest solar manufacturers, First Solar is expanding its manufacturing capacity at home and abroad. In addition to a third factory under construction in Ohio, the firm recently announced that it is expanding its Ohio manufacturing footprint and establishing a new manufacturing facility (its fourth American manufacturing facility) in the US Southeast. These latest investments are expected to bring First Solar’s total investment in American manufacturing to $4bn, while its annual US manufacturing capacity is forecast to expand to over 10GWDC by 2025. The firm also plans to invest about $270m in a dedicated R&D innovation center in Perrysburg, Ohio, which is expected to be completed in 2024.
Intersect Power orders 2.4GW of First Solar’s modules, for delivery in 2024-2026
