From pv magazine USA
US thin-film solar module producer First Solar has commissioned a new R&D innovation center in Lake Township, Ohio. The company said it is the largest facility of its kind in the Western Hemisphere.
The Jim Nolan Center for Solar Innovation is dedicated to the late James “Jim” F. Nolan, a former member of First Solar’s board of directors and the architect of the company’s cadmium telluride (CdTe) semiconductor platform.
According to a study by the US National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL), CdTe represented about 16% of the US solar market in 2023. First Solar is a leader in CdTe technology and differentiates itself not only by the use of thin-film PV technology, but also by its vertically integrated manufacturing process, domestic production and commitment to responsible solar. At the company’s California Technology Center (CTC) in Santa Clara, First Solar recently achieved a 23.1% efficient CdTe cell, a new world record certified by NREL.
“Thin films are the next technological battleground for the solar industry because they are key to commercializing tandem devices, which are anticipated to be the next disruption in photovoltaics,” said Mark Widmar, chief executive officer of First Solar. “While the United States leads the world in thin film PV, China is racing to close the innovation gap. We expect that this crucial investment in R&D infrastructure will help maintain our nation’s strategic advantage in thin film, accelerating the cycles of innovation needed to ensure that the next disruptive, transformative solar technology will be American-made.”
The new research facility includes a high-tech pilot manufacturing line for the production of full-sized prototypes of thin-film and tandem PV modules. Prior to the commissioning of the Jim Nolan Center, First Solar was using a manufacturing line at its Perrysburg, Ohio facility for product development efforts. With a dedicated R&D center, First Solar said it expects to “accelerate innovation cycles.”
The company stated that it will invest around half a billion dollars in R&D, creating about 300 new jobs by 2025, mainly at the Jim Nolan Center.
First Solar is also involved in perovskite solar development after announcing the acquisition last year of Evolar, a Swedish perovskite specialist. First Solar said in a statement that the acquisition will accelerate the development of next-generation PV technology, including high-efficiency tandem devices. It aims to integrate Evolar’s know-how with its existing research and development streams, intellectual property portfolio, and expertise in developing and commercially scaling thin-film PV.
In addition to R&D planned at the Jim Nolan Center, the company expects to also commission a perovskite development line at its campus in Perrysburg, Ohio, in the second half of 2024.
First Solar has invested nearly $2 billion in R&D and operates laboratories in Santa Clara, California, Perrysburg, Ohio, and Uppsala, Sweden.
At the end of 2023 First Solar had 16.6 GW of annual global nameplate manufacturing capacity and is expected to achieve over 25 GW of capacity by 2026. First Solar expects to commission new manufacturing facilities in Alabama in the second half of 2024 and Louisiana in the second half of 2025, bringing its total US nameplate capacity to 14 GW by 2026.
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