New Thin Film Solar Factory Pounds Another Nail In Coal Coffin

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Under the new “American Energy Dominance” policy, US taxpayers are supposed to shell out millions of dollars to keep old, outdated coal power plants up and running. Too bad all that money will go to waste. The killer combo of solar energy plus energy storage is already dominating new grid capacity additions, and now here comes the US startup First Solar with plans to expand domestic production of its next-generation thin film solar technology.

Thin Film Solar & Domestic Manufacturing

Thin film solar is just what it says. Instead of the chunks of silicon that characterize conventional solar cells, thin film solar cells can be mixed in a solution and sprayed or printed onto a surface. That opens up the potential for deploying low cost, roll-to-roll manufacturing systems, helping to push down the overall cost of solar power (see lots more thin film background here).

First Solar has its roots in the 1990 thin film solar startup Solar Cells, Inc, a specialist in the CdTe (cadmium telluride) thin film formula. Following a buyout and rebrand in 1999, the company has been making thin film solar cells under the First Solar moniker since 2002, currently billing itself as the only one among the biggest solar manufacturers in the world to be headquartered in the US. With domestic orders for its thin film technology on the rise, the missing link is a fully domestic manufacturing footprint.

First Solar has taken several steps in that direction in recent years with a healthy assist from state policy makers, including many who put aside red-state rhetoric in favor of job creation and long term economic benefits. In September of 2024, for example, state and local officials in Alabama celebrated the opening of a new First Solar factory in Lawrence County.

“First Solar is a world-class manufacturer, and its solar modules are poised to play an increasingly important role in U.S. energy self-sufficiency,” said Alabama Governor Kay Ivey, who welcomed the company’s plans to invest in South Carolina back in November of 2022.

The Law Of Unintended Consequences

The abrupt shift in federal energy policy this year has put a crimp in the momentum of the domestic solar industry. Among other hurdles, in July the US Congress cut back on solar tax credits with the passage of the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.” In addition, new regulations that restrict the use of overseas supply chains in domestic manufacturing will kick in next year.

Despite the fresh obstacles, the demand for solar power is not going to vanish into thin air. It’s common knowledge but worth repeating that solar and energy storage are the quickest and most competitive means of adding more generating capacity to the nation’s grid. A new analysis from Deloitte, for example, finds that renewable energy accounted for more than 90% of new capacity additions during the first half of this year, with solar and storage making up more than 80% of that figure.

With that in mind, it’s no surprise to see that First Solar plans to build yet another new US factory. To be located in the city of Gaffney in Cherokee County, South Carolina, the new facility will fabricate thin film solar cells from First Solar’s existing fleet of factories into solar modules, satisfying the demands of the forthcoming domestic manufacturing environment.

Word of the new factory leaked out through the trade press two weeks ago. On November 14 the company finally outlined its plans in a general announcement, in which it explained why it expects the venture to be a rousing success.

“The South Carolina facility — which will directly support American energy dominance and affordability goals — was catalyzed by demand for domestically-produced energy technology created by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed into law by President Donald J. Trump in July 2025,” First Solar stated, giving credit where credit is due.

“The facility is expected to increase First Solar’s capacity to produce American-made solar technology that is fully compliant with anticipated Foreign Entities of Concern (FEOC) guidance, by 3.7 gigawatts (GW), reaching 17.7 GW of annual nameplate capacity in 2027,” the company added, referring to the new restrictions on overseas supply chains.

Thin Film Solar & Jobs, Jobs, Jobs

Following First Solar’s lead, South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster also endorsed the project as a springboard for domestic energy production.

“First Solar’s investment will create 600 new jobs in Cherokee County, which will greatly strengthen the local economy and help advance America’s energy independence,” McMaster said in a press statement. “Their expanded presence in our state will provide even more opportunities for hardworking South Carolinians.”

No kidding. Between inflation, tariffs, and job-sucking AI technology, a good job is getting harder to find these days. First Solar expects the new facility to be up and running sometime during the second half of next year, much to the relief of 600 job seekers in South Carolina.

What’s All This About Coal, Then?

First Solar also points out that the new factory will complement its five existing plants in Ohio, Alabama, and Louisiana, along with R&D facilities in California and Ohio. “By 2027, the Company expects to support over 30,000 direct, indirect, and induced jobs across the country, estimated to represent more than $3 billion in labor income.”

In terms of direct employment, First Solar expects to have more than 5,500 people on its direct employment rolls by the end of next year. That’s just one solar company. There are others, of course. Keep an eye on Texas, which has refashioned itself as an epicenter of solar manufacturing in the US.

In comparison, all of US coal mining only accounted for about 41,000 jobs as of August this year. It’s also worth noting that competition from wind, solar, and storage is a recent phenomenon. Coal jobs were falling by the wayside all throughout the earlier part of the 20th century as machines took over hand labor, reaching a 40-year peak of 178,000 in 1985 and dropping to 90,000 in 2011. That trend was largely spurred by the natural gas fracking boom of the early 2000s, as the cost of renewable energy was relatively high.

Now that the cost of renewables and storage has dropped, coal-friendly policy makers have a tougher row to hoe. It’s going to get tougher in the coming years. Alongside thin film solar, new energy storage systems are also emerging on the market, with new, next-generation solar materials following close behind.

Besides, the sun will keep shining, and innovators will keep innovating, long after the current occupant of the White House leaves office as scheduled on January 20, 2029 — peacefully this time, one hopes.

Photo: The thin film solar startup First Solar is among the domestic manufacturers anticipating a fresh burst of demand for made-in-the-USA solar modules (cropped, courtesy of First Solar).