24 for ’24: 24 Stories from a Momentous Year for Solar Manufacturing

We’re making solar in America again. 

For too long, the United States has been over-reliant on foreign imports to build out clean energy capacity, but federal policies are fueling a surge in domestic solar manufacturing that is putting an end to our reliance on China and supporting American workers. 
 
Now, at full capacity, U.S. solar module factories can produce enough to meet nearly all demand for solar across the country. Moreover, the U.S. solar industry is investing big in other parts of the solar supply chain — from polysilicon to ingots, wafers, cells, inverters, and more — to make sure that the new era of American energy dominance will truly be American-made.  

That means more good jobs and homegrown energy. And the media is noticing.  

So, as the year draws to a close, check out 24 stories from around the country illustrating how momentous a year 2024 has been for U.S. solar manufacturing.  

1. Canary Media: The U.S. Is Making and Deploying More Solar Panels Than Ever Before (Dec. 6) 
   
   This year, the solar industry is set to break installation records and achieve significant manufacturing milestones — including the return of silicon solar cell production to the U.S. for the first time since 2019. 
   
   As a testament to the effectiveness of American energy incentives, domestic solar module manufacturing capacity has nearly quintupled since 2022 — courtesy of new or expanded factories in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Ohio, and Texas that benefited from the clean energy tax credits. The U.S. added a record-breaking 9.3 gigawatts of new solar module production capacity in the third quarter alone. 
   

2. Governing.com: The Manufacturing Boom Set Off By Clean Energy Tax Credits (Mar. 24)  
    
   More than $100 billion in private investment has already been spurred by federal energy incentives, helping to drive advanced manufacturing in many states.  
   
   David Burritt, the CEO of U.S. Steel, has called the return of domestic manufacturing, “the most amazing thing we’ve seen in the United States for a very long time.” 
   

3. Newsweek: Electrified Future: Form Energy Remakes Rust Belt Misery Into Batteries (Oct. 18) 
    
   Clean-tech startup company Form Energy announced an additional $405 million in financing, allowing it to expand its newly built factory where it makes a unique type of large-scale battery for long-term energy storage on the electric grid. 
   
   “This technology, iron air, is low cost enough that you can discharge for 100 hours,” Form Energy CEO and co-founder Mateo Jaramillo told Newsweek. “That’s the duration that we need to be able to really drive increased reliability in the electric system.” 
   

4. New York Times: Key Solar Panel Ingredient Is Made in the U.S.A. Again (Apr. 25) 
    
   A factory in Moses Lake, Washington, that shut down in 2019 will soon resume shipping a critical ingredient used in most solar panels that for years has been made almost exclusively in China.  
    
   The revival of the factory, which is owned by REC Silicon, could help achieve a longstanding goal of many American lawmakers and energy executives to re-establish a complete domestic supply chain for solar panels and reduce the world’s reliance on plants in China and Southeast Asia. 
   

5. Albuquerque Journal: Array CEO Tells Congressional Panel Solar Jobs to Triple (Jun. 12) 
   The CEO of Albuquerque-based Array Technologies told a congressional panel he expects solar manufacturing jobs to triple in the next decade as the country moves to onshore advanced manufacturing. 
   
   Array is building a $50 million manufacturing facility Albuquerque to boost its capacity to build the company’s solar tracker technology, which is expected to employ more than 300 people.  
   

6. Macon Telegraph: ‘Stepping up.’ Georgia Ranks Among the Best in U.S. for Building, Installing Solar Panels (Dec. 11) 
   
   Georgia is home to three solar manufacturers: Suniva, Qcells, Adion Solar, and a soon-to-be-operating solar recycling company, SOLARCYCLE, according to Costas Simoglou, director of energy technology for the Georgia Center of Innovation.  
   
   U.S. solar cell production resumed in the third quarter of 2024 for the first time since 2019, as silicon cells, the primary material used in solar cell production, resumed manufacturing in the U.S. for the first time since 2019, according to the report. Production shutdown due to competition from China, according to media reports. 
   

7. WUWF: Solar Power Continues to Shine Brightly in Florida (Dec. 13) 
   
   Florida is also home to one of the five new or expanded solar manufacturing factories that came online in Q3, bringing total U.S. solar module manufacturing capacity to nearly 40.  
   
   “Since Congress passed the bill in 2022, there’s really been a renaissance of American solar manufacturing,” Gallagher said. “We’re taking jobs back from China. We’re producing those solar panels at home now, and we’ve seen capacity to produce solar panels expand by four or fivefold in just in the last two years, so we can meet almost all of the demand for solar panel for installation of solar panels in the U.S. with homemade solar panels now.” 
   

8. Electrek: Nextracker Ships the First 100% U.S.-Made Solar Trackers Under the IRA (Dec. 10)  
    
   Nextracker just set a milestone in U.S. clean energy manufacturing: It has delivered the first-ever solar trackers expected to meet 100% domestic content requirements under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). 
   
   These U.S.-made trackers are now on their way to power SB Energy’s Pelican’s Jaw solar project in Kern County, California. Solar trackers, typically used in ground-mounted arrays, help maximize solar production by following the sun throughout the day. 

9. Reuters: Solar Manufacturer Suniva Resumes Production of American-Made Cells (Nov. 8) 
   
   U.S. solar company Suniva has started producing cells at its Georgia factory and is shipping them to customers. This is a milestone in the effort to build a robust domestic solar supply chain, bringing cell manufacturing back to the U.S. for the first time since 2019. 
   

10. ABC 12: Solar Component Plant to Produce More Than 1,100 Jobs in Saginaw County (Feb. 27) 
    
    In Michigan, Saginaw County is getting ready to welcome a new solar factory that will bring 1,100 jobs to the area and invest $900 million into the local economy. “$900 million project,” says Richland Township Manager Rob Grose. “It’s unbelievable. This is a game-changer for Richland Township, Thomas Township, and the whole Great Lakes Bay Region.” 
    

11. Utility Dive: Qcells Scores $1.4B DOE Loan Guarantee for Georgia Solar Factory (Aug. 8) 
     
    Qcells’ factory, its second in both the U.S. and Georgia, aims to plug a gap in the supply chain for silicon-based components. The facility is expected to create 1,950 jobs and slated to produce 3.3 gigawatts of solar panels per year, enough to power half a million homes.  
    
    The solar panel maker has been expanding its U.S. production capacity in recent months. Its Cartersville plant is part of a now $2.8 billion investment in its U.S. solar supply chain, including the expansion of its Dalton, Georgia, factory in October.  
    

12. Reuters: U.S. Solar Factories Strike Deal to Produce ‘Made in USA’ Panels (Mar. 27) 
    
    Two small solar manufacturers on Wednesday said they are joining forces to make panels that will enable their customers, U.S. solar project developers, to collect on a lucrative new federal subsidy for American-made clean energy equipment. 
    

13. Houston Chronicle: SEG Solar Opens $60M Global Headquarters in Houston with Plans for 500 New Jobs (Aug. 15)  
     
    SEG Solar opened its $60 million global headquarters this month in northwest Houston as more solar companies continue moving to Texas. Its focus is to deliver reliable and cost-effective solar modules to the utility, commercial, and residential markets. 

14. South Carolina Daily Gazette: $500M Battery Cell Plant Employing Hundreds Coming to the Upstate (Feb. 12) 
    
    The world’s largest industrial battery maker is building a $500 million plant in South Carolia that could eventually employ 500 people. 
     
    Pennsylvania-headquartered EnerSys announced plans Wednesday to manufacture lithium-ion battery cells at a 500,000-square-foot plant on 140 acres near Piedmont, South Carolina 

15. PV Magazine: First Solar Opens 3.5 GW Solar Factory in Alabama (Sep. 26) 
    
    U.S. thin-film specialist First Solar has opened a $1.1 billion vertically integrated thin-film solar factory in the U.S. state of Alabama. It said the 3.5 GW facility will create more than 800 new jobs. 
    Alabama Governor Kay Ivey said the manufacturing facility in Lawrence County, Alabama, would help end U.S. reliance on foreign-made PV modules. 
    

16. Electrek: GAF Energy’s New Texas Factory Is About To Make a Lot of Nailable Solar Shingles (May 7) 
    
    GAF Energy’s new Texas factory, the company’s second, will bump up its capacity by 500% and bring the total production of its solar shingle to 300 megawatts (MW) annually. It’s expected to employ more than 240 people. GAF Energy’s first factory, in San Jose, California, came online in 2021. 
    

17. The Cool Down: Solar Energy Company Unveils Groundbreaking Lightweight Solar Panels: ‘Its Potential Applications Are Limitless’ (Feb. 16) 
     
    In August, Bila Solar announced plans for a $35 million solar module manufacturing plant in Indianapolis, expected to create around 250 jobs and serve as the base of Bila’s U.S. efforts. “Solar energy should be accessible and abundant for everyone,” McDaniel said. “We look forward to driving innovation in Indiana to pursue that mission.” 
    

18. PV Tech: TMEIC to Build 9GW PV Inverter Facility in Texas (Aug. 21) 
    
    TMEIC has expanded its footprint in the U.S. with the construction of a 144,000 square foot, 9GW PV inverter factory in Brookshire, Texas.  
    

19. Solar Power World: SolarCycle’s New Georgia Facility Can Recycle 10 Million Solar Panels Annually (Oct. 31)  
    
    SolarCycle announced details of the solar panel recycling facility that will be built adjacent to its glass manufacturing plant in Cedartown, Georgia. The 255,000-ft² recycling facility will have the capacity to recycle 10 million solar panels each year — nearly 5 GW total. 
    SolarCycle will employ more than 1,250 workers across the recycling facility and glass manufacturing outfit once both locations reach full capacity. 
     
    “As Georgia continues to lead the nation in attracting jobs from emerging industries, we’re thankful SolarCycle is moving up creation of these opportunities in northwest Georgia, benefitting that entire region’s economy,” said Governor Brian Kemp. 
    

20. Utility Dive: Freyr Battery Enters Solar Manufacturing, Buys 5-Gw Plant From Trina Solar (Nov. 7) 
     
    Freyr’s push to create a vertically integrated solar operation in the U.S. follows Qcells’ work to do the same. 
     
    “Domestic manufacturing capacity for solar and batteries is essential for energy transition and job creation,” said Daniel Barcelo, Freyr’s CEO. “The U.S. was once the global leader in solar, and it can be again.” 
    

21. Solar Power World: New HJT Player NuVision Solar Plans Cell and Panel Manufacturing in Florida (Dec. 16) 
     
    New solar panel company NuVision Solar announced plans to start a 2.5-GW solar cell and panel manufacturing facility in the United States. The company will create 500 jobs at the operation in West Palm Beach, Florida. 
    

22. Solar Power World: SolarEdge Now Shipping U.S.-Made Residential Batteries (Dec. 9) 
     
    SolarEdge Technologies has announced it is now shipping the new SolarEdge Home Battery “USA Edition,” completing its comprehensive portfolio of domestically manufactured solar and storage products designed to qualify for the domestic content bonus credit. SolarEdge previously announced contract manufacturing partnerships in Austin, Texas, and Seminole, Florida. 
    

23. AL.com: $10 Million Solar Panel Plant Announced for North Alabama, To Create 70 Jobs (Apr. 15) 
     
    OMCO Solar plans to invest more than $10 million into its second production facility in Alabama, creating 70 full-time jobs in Limestone County. OMCO is one of the nation’s largest manufacturers of steel structures for solar panels. 
    

24. PV Tech: Enphase Energy begins shipments of IQ8 microinverters made in Texas (July 8) 
     
    US microinverter manufacturer Enphase Energy started commercial shipments of its IQ8 microinverter from its facility in Arlington, Texas. Enphase credits American clean energy incentives for helping it manufacture these inverters in the United States, supporting jobs and advancing America’s clean energy economy.