Qcells on Tuesday said it started manufacturing solar cells at its factory in Cartersville, Georgia, a major step toward having a fully domestic solar supply chain.
The factory will be the only one in the U.S. to make every major solar panel component — ingot, cells, and wafers — under one roof. Production is still ramping up, but by the end of this year it is slated to have 3.3 gigawatts of capacity. The company makes 8.6 GW of finished solar panels a year between its Cartersville factory and another in Dalton, or enough to fulfill about 20% of U.S. installed capacity last year.
According to Scott Moskowitz, Qcells’ vice president of market strategy, it’s a major milestone given that just a decade ago, the U.S. solar manufacturing industry was “basically extinct.”
“Now Qcells sells panels that are U.S.-made, which gives our customers certainty over their supply chains, minimizes risks, and the opportunity to take advantage of domestic content bonuses that exist under the investment tax credit,” he said.
Solar project developers are rushing to start construction ahead of a July 4 deadline, imposed last year by the Republicans’ One Big Beautiful Bill, to qualify for an up to 40% investment tax break if a certain percentage of their materials are U.S.-made. Those that meet the deadline will have four years to complete the project and secure the credit.
