First solar

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First Solar, Inc.

logo
legal form Corporation
ISIN US3364331070
founding 1999 as First Solar Holdings, LLC
Seat Tempe , Arizona ,United StatesUnited States
management Mark Widmar ( CEO )
Number of employees 6400 (2018)
sales $ 2.24 billion (2018)
Branch Solar industry
Website www.firstsolar.com
As of December 31, 2018

First Solar, Inc. is an international company in the photovoltaic industry with headquarters in the USA. The company manufactures thin-film solar modules and offers comprehensive photovoltaic system solutions. On April 17, 2012, First Solar announced the closure of individual plants and announced job cuts. Accordingly, the number of employees is to be reduced by a third worldwide.

In 2014, First Solar installed in the USA with an extension of 1,023 megawatts before the MA Mortenson Company with an extension of 512.9 megawatts and before SolarCity with 502 megawatts, photovoltaic systems with more solar power than any other company.

General

First Solar is a provider of photovoltaic systems on an industrial scale and manufacturer of thin-film solar modules with production sites in Germany, Malaysia and the USA. First Solar was the world's largest manufacturer of solar modules with a production capacity of over 1.5 gigawatts peak ( GWp ) in 2010 . For 2011 an annual capacity of 2.27 GWp is targeted. First Solar uses a technology in which a semiconductor layer made of cadmium telluride (CdTe) generates electricity through the so-called photovoltaic effect. Although this technology has a lower conversion efficiency than silicon solar cells in laboratory tests, it is far more cost-effective to manufacture and, due to its low temperature coefficient, can be used in different climatic zones. Field studies also show that photovoltaic modules with CdTe technology work just as well or better than silicon-based photovoltaic modules.

First Solar was the first solar company to reduce its own production costs to less than USD 1 per watt. The current production cost (November 2011) is $ 0.74 per watt.

In Germany, the company was mainly represented at two locations: In Frankfurt (Oder) was the headquarters of the production facility of First Solar Manufacturing GmbH, with Burghard von Westerholt as managing director and plant manager of the production facility there, which, according to the announcement in April 2012, was closed at the end of the year Were closed in 2012. The headquarters of the European sales company First Solar GmbH, with its managing director Christopher Burghardt, was in Mainz. Together with other locations in Europe, around 150 jobs were lost. The company employed more than 1,400 people at the two German locations.

Company history

First Solar was founded in 1999 in Tempe, Arizona (USA). The company arose from the sale of Solar Cell Inc. (SCI) to True North Partners, a Walton family company that founded Wal-Mart . The first commercial use of the CdTe solar modules took place in 2002. The production method was gradually improved and in 2005 First Solar achieved a production output of 25 megawatts peak (MWp) for the first time. On November 17, 2006, First Solar was listed on the Nasdaq technology exchange and has been listed there ever since. In October 2009, First Solar was the first solar company to be included in the S&P 500 stock index.

Fortune selected First Solar 2010 among the ten fastest growing companies worldwide. The German environmental consultancy Murphy & Spitz selected First Solar 2010 as one of the most sustainable photovoltaic companies worldwide.

In 2010 and 2011, MIT Technology Review named First Solar one of the 50 most innovative companies worldwide.

At the beginning of 2015, the company achieved a total installed capacity of 10 GW.

Companies

The company's headquarters are in Tempe , Arizona, USA. The research and development department and the original manufacturing facility are based in Ohio . First Solar has grown significantly through its activities in Germany, as Thomas Friedman in his book What is to be done. An agenda for the 21st century reported. The company opened its first production facility outside of the United States in Frankfurt (Oder) in summer 2007. The expansion in 2011 doubled production there to an annual capacity of 500 MWp - with around 1200 employees. The massive overcapacities and the reduction in solar subsidies then meant short-time work for employees in the German plant and the announcement of the closure at the end of the year. The Vertriebs-GmbH in Mainz is also to be significantly reduced in size. Another plant was opened in Malaysia in 2008 and expanded in 2009 and 2010. This plant is also to be closed in 2012. In 2010 First Solar had a total of 28 production lines with an annual production capacity of more than 1500 megawatts. In 2011, First Solar employed around 7,000 people worldwide.

On October 25, 2011, Michael J. Ahearn, Chairman of the Supervisory Board and founder of First Solar, took over the post of CEO from Rob Gilette on an interim basis . On May 3, 2012, First Solar announced that James Hughes had been appointed as its new CEO. Mike Ahearn remains Chairman of the Board. Hughes joined First Solar as Director of Sales.

First Solar produces solar modules for commercial photovoltaic projects on roofs and open spaces and offers comprehensive system solutions. Since April 2011, First Solar modules have also been available for use in photovoltaic systems with 10 kW to 30 kW.

recycling

As one of the first companies in the industry, First Solar has launched a take-back and recycling program for solar modules. First Solar's program was the first in the industry to be fully pre-funded. Owners of First Solar systems only need to inform First Solar and have the modules professionally dismantled. First Solar will then take care of the removal and recycling free of charge. According to First Solar, up to 95 percent of the heavy metal-containing semiconductor material can be recovered in a closed recycling process and processed into new solar modules. 90 percent of the glass can be recycled. The program is financed by a contribution that is already included in the sales price of the modules and flows into a purpose-specific investment account. This ensures that the modules can be disposed of in the long term regardless of First Solar's existence.

Projects / references

Waldpolenz solar park

The Waldpolenz solar park was built between 2007 and 2009 and was the largest photovoltaic system in Germany at the time.

Lieberose solar park

At the beginning of 2009, project developer Juwi started to build a solar park with First Solar modules on the former Lieberose military training area near Cottbus . With a size of 163 hectares, this is the third largest solar park in Germany. The site had not been used since the fall of the Iron Curtain and the subsequent withdrawal of the Soviet Army in the 1990s. To this day, a reasonable reuse for the fallow land has proven to be a great challenge, especially since large parts of the former military training area were contaminated by contaminated sites. In addition to the ecological benefit through the savings of around 35,000 tons of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) per year during the operating time of the solar park, the renovation of the site is financed by leasing the area and participating in the electricity revenue. A total of five million euros are planned for this. After the end of the project, an area will be available that can be used again for tourism and ecology in accordance with nature conservation. The project therefore has a twofold advantage for the environment: clean energy production with the help of photovoltaics as well as decontamination and demunitioning of the site, financed by the energy produced there. The projected total yield is around 53 million kWh, which corresponds to the supply of around 15,000 households per year. The solar park was officially inaugurated on August 20, 2009.

Masdar City

Masdar City, a CO 2 -neutral science city designed by the British architecture firm Foster + Partners, is to be built in Abu Dhabi . First Solar has supplied modules for a solar power plant with an output of five MW, which contributes to a sustainable power supply in the new city.

Associated partner at DESERTEC

On March 16, 2010, First Solar became the first pure photovoltaic manufacturer to become an Associated Partner of the DESERTEC industry initiative , Dii GmbH. The Desertec concept has set itself the goal of providing a substantial proportion of the electricity in the Middle East, North Africa and Europe from a network of solar and wind energy by 2050. As part of its partnership with Dii, First Solar contributes its expertise in the field of large-scale photovoltaic projects to the working groups of the DESERTEC network.

First Solars solar modules are an ideal addition to the other regenerative energy technologies of the DESERTEC Group due to their very low maintenance requirements and the above-average energy yield. Thanks to a low temperature coefficient, First Solar's thin-film technology delivers an above-average energy yield even in desert regions.

Sarnia

In 2010 First Solar completed what was then the world's largest solar power plant in use. With 80 MW (DC), the Sarnia solar park in southwestern Ontario, Canada, produces solar power for more than 10,000 households.

Works

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Leadership
  2. ↑ a b First Solar sales, key figures, balance sheet / income statement. In: finanzen.net. Retrieved December 3, 2019 .
  3. ^ First Solar Creates Utility Systems Business. (No longer available online.) June 1, 2010, archived from the original on May 28, 2014 ; Retrieved May 26, 2014 (First Solar press release). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / investor.firstsolar.com
  4. ↑ First Solar adapts production to changing market conditions. (No longer available online.) April 17, 2012, archived from the original on May 28, 2014 ; Retrieved May 26, 2014 (First Solar press release). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / investor.firstsolar.com
  5. ↑ 2015 Top 500 North American Solar Contractors
  6. ↑ Photon Yield Measurement 2010 ( Memento from August 13, 2011 in the Internet Archive )
  7. ↑ Forest Collins: Field Performance of Thin-Film ( Memento of the original from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . (PDF; 2.2 MB) February 2, 2010, accessed on May 26, 2014.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.pvthin.org
  8. ↑ FSLR Q1 2011 Web Schedule Template Final . (pdf) Quarterly Report Q1 2011, accessed on May 26, 2014.
  9. ↑ First Solar closes factory: the sun goes down in the east . handelsblatt.com, April 17, 2012, accessed April 17, 2012
  10. ↑ First-Solar-Werke closed . In: rbb-online.de . 2012-12. Retrieved February 27, 2013.
  11. ↑ First Solar closes plant in Frankfurt / Oder - dismantling also in Mainz . www.focus.de, accessed April 17, 2012
  12. ↑ First Solar Manufacturing Levels  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.firstsolar.com  
  13. ↑ Alfred Maydorn: First Solar: price jump for index inclusion. Accessed June 28, 2019 (German).
  14. ↑ Richard McGill Murphy: Fastest-Growing's Rising Stars . CNN Money, Aug. 20, 2010.
  15. ↑ Market development - sustainability study on the photovoltaic industry with surprises -. January 26, 2010, accessed May 27, 2014 .
  16. ↑ 50 Smartest Companies 2014. In: MIT Technology Review. Retrieved May 27, 2014 .
  17. ↑ 10GW and Counting! , January 19, 2015
  18. ↑ 1200 jobs in danger: US company First Solar gives up German plant . www.sueddeutsche.de, accessed April 17, 2012.
  19. ^ First Solar Appoints James Hughes CEO. (No longer available online.) May 3, 2012, archived from the original on May 13, 2012 ; Retrieved May 27, 2014 (press release). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / investor.firstsolar.com
  20. ↑ Michael Ziegler: First Solar photovoltaic modules now for 10–30 kW commercial solar systems -. April 14, 2011, accessed May 27, 2014 .
  21. ↑ a b Photon, March 2009, pp. 52–59
  22. ↑ Lieberose solar park. In: www.juwi.de. Retrieved May 27, 2014 .
  23. ^ Amt Peitz ( Memento from December 20, 2011 in the Internet Archive )
  24. ^ Lieberose Solar Farm Becomes Germany's Biggest, World's Second-Biggest. (No longer available online.) August 20, 2009, archived from the original on May 28, 2014 ; Retrieved May 26, 2014 (FirstSolar press release). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / investor.firstsolar.com
  25. ↑ Largest solar power plant opened in Germany. (No longer available online.) In: Social Media Release. August 20, 2009, archived from the original on May 28, 2014 ; accessed on May 27, 2014 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / oursocialmedia.com
  26. ↑ David Ehrlich: First Solar to Brighten Up Masdar City. In: Gigaom. January 15, 2009, accessed May 27, 2014 .