Singapore-based Maxeon Solar Technologies, Ltd. is investing more than $1 billion to build a new 3 gigawatt (GW) solar facility in Albuquerque, New Mexico, its first expansion in the United States .
The facility will produce state-of-the-art TOPCon silicon photovoltaic cell technology and Maxeon’s proprietary tile cell performance line solar modules to meet the rapidly growing demand for domestically produced solar panels , the company said in a recent press release.
With the plant, Maxeon said it is targeting the utility-scale power plant market and rooftop distributed generation applications. The plant is expected to be the first large-scale manufacturing of photovoltaic (PV) cells and panels in New Mexico, and its planned capacity is about twice the size of the largest silicon solar manufacturing facility currently operating in the US, Maxeon said in the statement. .
The project is subject to successful financial close under the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Title 17 Clean Energy Financing Program, and Maxeon is currently in the due diligence stage of its application. loan request Maxeon said it expects to begin construction in the first quarter of 2024, with ramp-up of the factory to begin in 2025.
“Thanks to the support of the Biden administration, the United States is now poised to relocate and expand a domestic solar supply chain,” said Maxeon CEO Bill Mulligan. “This will improve national energy security and create a new cadre of good-paying manufacturing jobs. Maxeon is well-positioned to play an important role in this process thanks to our proven experience in deploying and operating solar cell and panel technology world-class. We see a great opportunity to help the country advance its clean energy agenda while generating strong local economic impact.”
Maxeon has chosen a 160-acre site located in the Mesa Del Sol community and is designing the complex to include solar cell manufacturing, panel assembly, a warehouse and administrative offices. Due to strong customer demand and the anticipated availability of sufficient infrastructure at the site, the company said it is currently evaluating plans to increase the scale of its U.S. manufacturing operation by approximately 50 percent up to a nominal capacity of 4.5 GW. A final decision on the plant’s capacity is expected by the end of the year, according to the press release.
“The Inflation Reduction Act has catalyzed a new chapter in America’s energy transition. Our new solar cell and panel installation in New Mexico is an ambitious and concrete response to the need to decarbonize the U.S. economy while creating permanent local high-skilled manufacturing and engineering jobs. We hope the new plant will also serve as an anchor to attract more regional investment into the solar supply chain. As a company that started in Silicon Valley 38 years ago, we are proud to bring technologies developed in the United States home and contribute to the relocation of a domestic solar supply chain,” added Mulligan.
“I am proud to welcome Maxeon Solar Technologies’ first manufacturing facility to New Mexico,” New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham said in the statement. “This private investment shows how our state programs, along with President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, have charted a path for New Mexico as a leader in growing the clean energy economy and creating ‘a strong workforce for the future’.
“I fought hard to pass the Inflation Reduction Act last year because I knew it could be transformative for New Mexico families and the health of our climate. Maxeon’s new factory is proof that the Act is working as it was intended,” said Senator Martin Heinrich. “Maxeon’s facility will be the second major clean energy manufacturing facility to open in New Mexico since President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act. Together, we are unlocking our potential to ‘clean energy and creating hundreds of high-quality jobs for New Mexicans. The best part: we’re just getting started.’
“Albuquerque is at the forefront of the movement to bring manufacturing home because of our unique location, affordability and skilled workforce,” said Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller. “Providing good-paying clean energy jobs will help foster new opportunities for families in New Mexico and create a more sustainable future for America.”
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