SolarWorld expands Oregon plant

SolarWorld is expanding its Oregon plant.

SolarWorld’s factory in Oregon will be the first integrated monocrystalline solar photovoltaic plant in the country after a planned expansion, the German solar company announced in October.

Solarworld is adding a 350-megawatt module assembly factory at its Hillsboro site adjacent to its existing wafer and cell production facility, which opened in October 2008. The expansion will bring the company’s U.S. module manufacturing capacity to 500 MW by 2011, the company says. SolarWorld also has a panel plant in Camarillo, Calif.

Module assembly is expected to begin in mid-2010. SolarWorld is not yet disclosing how many jobs the factory expansion will produce, though the company is assembling management and engineers and plans to be hiring workers next year, SolarWorld spokesman Ben Santarris says.

SolarWorld had 225.3 million € in revenue in the second quarter of 2009, a 28 percent increase from the year’s first quarter. It is also planning to pursue federal stimulus funds through the $2.3 billion Advanced Energy Manufacturing Tax Credit. Aiming to fuel investment in domestic manufacturing, the program offers a 30 percent tax credit for manufacturers of renewable energy equipment.