First Solar Inaugurates New AI-Enabled Louisiana Manufacturing Facility; Currently Employs Over 700 People And Is Expected To Have 826 Employees By The End Of The Year; Expects Almost 18 GW Of Domestic Production Capacity In 2027

Author: Benzinga Newsdesk | November 21, 2025 02:18pm

• First Solar's fifth operating US manufacturing facility creates over 800 new manufacturing jobs
• Facility forecast to raise Iberia Parish's GDP by 4.4% in first full year of operations at capacity
• Largest American solar manufacturer expects almost 18 GW of domestic production capacity in 2027

First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) (the "Company" or "First Solar") today inaugurated its new fully vertically integrated manufacturing facility in Iberia Parish, Louisiana. The $1.1 billion facility, which spans approximately 2.4 million square feet and is about 11 times the size of the New Orleans Superdome, currently employs over 700 people and is expected to have 826 employees by the end of the year. Once fully ramped, the Iberia Parish facility is expected to add 3.5 gigawatts (GW) of annual nameplate capacity, taking First Solar's American manufacturing footprint to 14 GW in 2026, and 17.7 GW in 2027, when a recently announced production facility in South Carolina is expected to be fully ramped.

The Iberia Parish facility began production in July 2025, several months ahead of schedule. The accelerated timeline was driven by the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and the Trump administration's trade policies, both of which catalyzed demand for American-made solar technology that is fully compliant with anticipated Foreign Entities of Concern (FEOC) guidance. The facility, which has no dependencies on Chinese crystalline silicon supply chains, produces First Solar's Series 7 modules using American materials including glass from Illinois and Ohio, and steel produced in Mississippi and fabricated into backrails in Louisiana.

Posted In: FSLR