Corning and US solar manufacturers join forces to produce American-made panels

The companies announced on Thursday that Corning, a technology company, has signed a deal to produce the first solar panel made entirely of American components.

Why it's important

The alliance between Georgia's Suniva and Corning, a panel manufacturer, is an important milestone in efforts to create a U.S. manufacturing sector for solar that can compete with China. Heliene, based in Canada, produces panels in Minnesota. Corning, through its subsidiary Hemlock Semiconductor, produces silicon wafers, polysilicon and other raw materials for the solar industry in Michigan.

KEY QUOTE

Corning Vice President and General Manager of Solar Technologies and CEO of Hemlock Semiconductor, AB Ghosh said: "Corning looks forward to leveraging our advanced manufacturing expertise to provide top-quality solar component and secure the U.S. Energy Supply Chain."

CONTEXT

The U.S. manufacturing capacity for solar panels has steadily increased in recent years, thanks to the generous tax credits included in the former president Joe Biden’s 2022 Inflation Reduce Act.

Clean energy companies claim that their business is aligned with Trump’s agenda of boosting domestic energy resources and American job creation.

By the Numbers

According to the companies, the new module includes a solar panel with up to 66% domestic content. This is the highest percentage of the market.

Solar project developers could qualify for an additional 10% domestic content tax credit on top of the 30% tax credit under the Inflation Reduction Act for clean energy projects. (Reporting and editing by Nichola W. Groom)

(source: Reuters)