Capital Power secures first order of solar modules from First Solar

Published on July 07, 2023 by Dave Kovaleski

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Capital Power Corp. secured its first order for approximately 1 gigawatt (GWDC) of ultra-low carbon thin film solar modules from solar company First Solar.

The Series 6 Plus modules, which will be delivered between 2026 and 2028, will support Capital Power’s growing development portfolio.

“We are excited to partner with First Solar and its responsibly produced ultra-low carbon solar technology, which supports our solar development pipeline,” Chris Kopecky, senior vice president and chief legal, development and commercial officer at Capital Power, said. “First Solar’s longstanding investment in domestic supply chains ensures the use of high-quality American solar technology, including products made with significant amounts of domestically sourced content, to power our projects. Together, with our shared commitment to the sustainable and responsible development of the solar industry, we look forward to building on this relationship.”

First Solar’s responsibly produced, advanced thin film photovoltaic (PV) modules have set industry benchmarks for quality, durability, reliability, design, and environmental performance. Their solar modules have the lowest carbon and water footprint of any commercially available PV module on the market. They are also the first PV manufacturer to have its product included in the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT) global registry for sustainable electronics.

Also, First Solar is the only one of the world’s ten largest solar manufacturers to be a member of the Responsible Business Alliance (RBA) and the company has zero tolerance for forced labor in its manufacturing or its supply chains.

“Capital Power joins a growing group of project developers that partner with First Solar as a reliable module technology provider that can help de-risk their project pipelines by delivering long-term pricing and supply certainty,” Georges Antoun, chief commercial officer, First Solar said. “We are pleased that Capital Power selected Responsible Solar technology to power its assets reliably, affordably and sustainably.”

Capital Power is committed to net zero by 2045 and its balanced approach to power generation includes a focused effort on solar energy growth. With three solar facilities in operation, Capital Power will use its development and construction expertise to deliver projects against an active US solar pipeline totaling nearly 2.4 GWDC.

First Solar is investing approximately $1.3 billion in expanding its US manufacturing footprint from over 6.5 gigawatts (GWDC) of annual capacity currently, to approximately 10.9 GWDC by 2026. First Solar, the largest solar manufacturer in the Western Hemisphere, also announced an investment of up to $370 million for a dedicated research and development (R&D) innovation center in Perrysburg, Ohio. It is expected to be completed in 2024.