(Credit: Maxeon)In further expansion of solar energy production in the United States, two major solar project sites have been announced, both of which mark over $1 billion in investment and hundreds of new manufacturing jobs.
First Solar selected the Acadiana Regional Airport in Iberia Parish, Louisiana, representing the largest single capital investment in the area’s history. The project is projected to be completed by 2026 and should generate about 3.5 gigawatts of energy. More than 700 new direct manufacturing jobs will be created as well.
First Solar said it prides itself on being the only of the world’s 10 largest solar manufacturers to be headquartered in the U.S. and not manufactured in China. The new Louisiana site will implement the company’s first Solar Series 7 modules, which use 100% U.S.-made components.
Maxeon Solar Technologies has chosen the Mesa Del Sol community of Albuquerque, New Mexico for its 160-acre solar site. The site will generate over 3 GW of energy and is expected to create some 1,800 highly skilled manufacturing and engineering jobs for the area. The company is also evaluating plans to upscale production to 4.5 GW due to strong customer demand. Construction of the facility is to begin in 2024 and should be completed and functioning by 2025.
Maxeon’s project is subject to a successful financial close from the Department of Energy as the site is contingent upon DOE loans, made possible by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
"The Inflation Reduction Act has catalyzed a new chapter in America's energy transition. Our new solar cell and panel facility in New Mexico is an ambitious and concrete response to the need to decarbonize the U.S. economy while creating permanent highly-skilled local manufacturing and engineering jobs," said Bill Mulligan, CEO of Maxeon. "We expect the new plant will also serve as an anchor to attract further regional investment in the solar supply chain. As a company that started in Silicon Valley 38 years ago, we are proud to be bringing U.S.-developed technologies back home and to contribute to the reshoring of a domestic solar supply chain."
Largely thanks to government incentives like those outlined in the IRA, solar investment now outpaces global fossil fuel spending. Sites such as these mark the continued success and rapid growth of the solar industry, which acts as the main contributor to the U.S. power grid’s clean energy growth.
