First Solar first to produce 1 GW in a single year
TEMPE, ARIZONA - First Solar Inc. announced it has manufactured and shipped more than 1 gigawatt (GW) of its photovoltaic (PV) solar modules in 2009, becoming the first PV company to attain this production volume in a single year.
One gigawatt of solar modules produces enough electricity to serve the needs of approximately 145,000 average American homes and saves roughly 1 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually.
As the worldÂ’s largest solar module manufacturer, First Solar has increased its manufacturing capacity from approximately 75 megawatts (MW) per year at the beginning of 2007 to more than 1GW today.
“This proof that the solar industry can achieve the manufacturing scale necessary to fight climate change is especially timely in light of the Copenhagen conference,” said Bruce Sohn, First Solar president. “Our efforts in scaling our technology are critical to creating a more sustainable energy infrastructure and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.”
First Solar has continually lowered the cost of manufacturing solar modules, breaking the $1 per watt barrier earlier this year.
Related News
BC Hydro: 2021 was a record-breaking year for electricity demand
VANCOUVER - From June’s heat dome to December’s extreme cold, 2021 was a record-setting year, according to BC Hydro.
On Friday, the energy company released a new report on electricity demand, and how extreme temperatures over extended periods of time led to record peak loads.
“We use peak loads to describe the electricity demand in the province during the highest load hour of each day,” Kyle Donaldson, BC Hydro spokesperson, said in a media release.
“With the heat dome in the summer and the sustained cold temperatures in December, we saw more record-breaking hours on more days last year than any other single…
