First Solar

First Solar, Inc. is a <a href="/facts/Public_company/tnJQvSdR">publicly traded</a> American manufacturer of <a href="/facts/Solar_panels/gufbEu8n">solar panels</a>, and provider of utility-scale <a href="/facts/Photovoltaic_power_station/gPf4oQNW">PV power plants</a>, supporting services that include finance, construction, maintenance and <a href="/facts/End-of-life_(product)/LaKyw5RU">end-of-life</a> panel recycling. First Solar uses rigid <a href="/facts/Thin-film_solar_cell/54UK9nKn">thin-film modules</a> for its solar panels, and produces <a href="/facts/Cadmium_telluride_photovoltaics/fntm90oN">CdTe panels</a> using <a href="/facts/Cadmium_telluride/eyfWTv6Q">cadmium telluride</a> (CdTe) as a semiconductor. 
The company was founded in 1990 by inventor <a href="/facts/Harold_McMaster/XXGWqbS7">Harold McMaster</a> as Solar Cells, Inc. and the Florida Corporation in 1993 with JD Polk. In 1999 it was purchased by True North Partners, LLC, who rebranded it as First Solar, Inc. 
The company went public in 2006, trading on the NASDAQ. Its current chief executive is Mark Widmar, who succeeded the previous CEO James Hughes July 1, 2016. 
The Arizona-based manufacturer opened a $1.1 billion facility in Alabama in September 2024. The company operates three facilities in Ohio and is currently constructing a $1.1 billion 3.5 GW plant in Louisiana expected to come online in 2026. Once the Louisiana facility is operational, the company expects to have more than 14 GW of domestic capacity.

First Solar open-in-new

First Solar