News: Photovoltaics
22 January 2024
First Solar acquires facility for use as distribution center to serve expanding Ohio manufacturing footprint
Cadmium telluride (CdTe) thin-film photovoltaic (PV) module maker First Solar Inc of Tempe, AZ, USA has acquired a 1.2 million square-foot facility in Troy Township, Ohio. Formerly known as Peloton Output Park, the facility is expected to be repurposed into a new distribution center serving First Solar’s Ohio manufacturing footprint, which comprises three manufacturing facilities with a combined annual nameplate capacity of about 6GW at the end of 2023.
“As we prepare to expand our Ohio capacity by almost a gigawatt this year, there’s a need for our logistics and distribution capabilities to scale to match manufacturing growth,” says chief supply chain officer Mike Koralewski. “We intend to use this facility to ensure the efficient and timely shipping of modules to our customers, repurposing it into a dedicated distribution hub for the largest solar manufacturing footprint in the Western Hemisphere. We expect that this approach will allow us to streamline logistics operations, while reducing operating costs and contributing to our cost-reduction roadmap,” he adds. “In the long term, the flexible space that the facility affords us could also serve as a light-scale satellite manufacturing location with the potential to support our factories and R&D center in Ohio.”
In addition to expanding its Ohio footprint to over 7GW of annual nameplate capacity this year, First Solar expects to invest over $2bn in new manufacturing facilities in Alabama and Louisiana. The firm expects to have 14GW of fully vertically integrated US solar manufacturing capacity by 2026. Additionally, First Solar is investing up to $370m in a dedicated R&D innovation center in Perrysburg, Ohio, which is expected to be completed in 2024.
First Solar breaks ground on $1.1bn 3.5GW Louisiana factory
First Solar selects Alabama for fourth US manufacturing facility
First Solar investing $270m in R&D innovation center in Perrysburg, Ohio
