Tempe-based First Solar announced plans to build a new manufacturing plant for photovoltaic (PV) solar modules in Mesa. The plant will build modules capable of producing 250 megwatts of electricity per year and employ 600 workers.
The company says the facility is located on a 135-acre site that was previously home to a General Motors vehicle testing facility and is designed to accommodate future expansion. Construction is set to begin in 2Q 2011 with delivery of solar modules in 3Q 2012.
First Solar is a world leader in thin-film technologies that have brought down solar panel prices dramatically in the past few years. They use cadmium-tellurium (CdTe) modules [right, credit First Solar] rather than the more common polycrystalline silicon panels.