First phase of Gaffney solar-module production facility inaugurated

First Solar inaugurated the first phase of its Gaffney, South Carolina, production facility, bringing final Series 6 Plus module production processes onshore at the company's sixth U.S. manufacturing site.

The approximately $330 million, two-phase facility receives modules initiated by First Solar's international manufacturing fleet and completes their final production steps in South Carolina. The company said approximately 500 positions have already been filled. A second phase remains under construction and is expected to double the site's annual nameplate capacity to 3.4 gigawatts by mid-2027, so that future figure is not represented as current operating capacity.

Headline metrics

Two-phase investment	Approximately $330 million
Positions filled	Approximately 500
Planned full-site capacity	3.4 GW annually by mid-2027

Highlights

Completed openingFirst Solar's October 28 company release says it inaugurated the first phase that day in Gaffney, South Carolina.
Onshored processThe facility performs final production processes for Series 6 Plus modules initiated elsewhere in First Solar's manufacturing fleet.
Current workforceThe company reported that approximately 500 positions at the facility had already been filled.
Future phase caveatThe 3.4-gigawatt annual nameplate figure depends on completion of a second phase expected in mid-2027.

Resources

First Solar company releasebusinesswire.com