The US’s largest solar panel maker breaks ground on a 3.5 GW factory

First Solar, the largest solar panel maker in the US, today announced that it has broken ground on its $1.1 billion factory in Louisiana.

The manufacturing facility in Iberia Parish, Louisiana, southwest of Baton Rouge, is First Solar’s fifth fully vertically integrated factory in the US.

The photovoltaic panel production factory, which is expected to start commercial shipments by the first half of 2026, is believed to be the largest capital investment in the area’s history.

Governor John Bel Edwards (D-LA) said, “This is a historic day for Iberia Parish and Louisiana as we celebrate this record-breaking investment and the hundreds of good-paying jobs it will create.”

The facility is forecast to grow First Solar’s nameplate manufacturing capacity by 3.5 gigawatts (GW) to reach approximately 14 GW in the US and 25 GW globally in 2026.

When the factory is complete, it will be over 2 million square feet in size. It’s designed to be able to transform a sheet of glass into a ready-to-ship Series 7 module in around 4.5 hours, which means it will be capable of producing over 12 new panels every minute.

Tempe, Arizona-based First Solar’s investment in Louisiana is expected to create over 700 new direct manufacturing jobs in the local area. The company currently has more than 2,500 employees across the US, and it expects to have over 4,000 direct employees in the US by 2026.

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Photo: First Solar

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