PVH to open 6 GW U.S. solar tracker manufacturing site

PV Hardware (PVH) ranks among the largest solar tracker providers in the world, holding nearly 10% of global market share. The company has manufacturing facilities in Spain and Saudi Arabia, and has been a market leader in European and Middle East markets since 2018. Now, the company is set to make a splash in the U.S. market, as it announced it will build a Texas-based facility to manufacture its products.

The company said it expects the 6 GW factory to be operational by June 2023, supplying its product for projects across North America. PVH said most companies sign sourcing agreements with a wide set of providers, but it operates differently. The company said it controls every aspect of its product, from buying its own steel, sourcing electronics to building its own controllers, making its own rivets, owning its robotics, and paying for in-house PVH labor. The site will be the company’s third wholly-owned factory globally.

“The solar industry is one of the most challenging in terms of execution times. We are building bigger plants than ever in a shorter period of time, it is an impossible task if it’s not well supported by suppliers. Thanks to PVH, we are able to received the material in the shortest time imaginable and start construction on schedule despite challenging market dynamics and supply chain disruptions. A dedicated manufacturing line is essential for short and timely deliveries,” aid Hitesh Patel, head of solar PV, KSA.

PVH has operated in the U.S. since its founding in California in 2011. The company has supplied over 2.5 GW across 36 photovoltaic projects across the country. The company’s manufacturing playbook for solar is planned well in advance, and the company is currently buying goods for 2025 plans. The new factory will allow PVH to rely on local materials and workforce, boosting the economy and contributing capacity to the expected rapid growth of solar across the United States.

The announcement is the latest in a wave of cleantech manufacturing developments following the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which has numerous incentives across the supply chain, including:

• An investment of $30 billion in production tax credits to accelerate domestic manufacturing of solar panels, wind turbines, batteries, and critical minerals processing.
• A $10 billion investment tax credit to build clean technology manufacturing facilities, including those that make electric vehicles, wind turbines and solar panels
• $500 million in the Defense Production Act for heat pumps and critical minerals processing
• $2 billion in grants to retool existing auto manufacturing facilities to manufacture clean vehicles
• Up to $20 billion in loans to build new clean vehicle manufacturing facilities across the United States
• $2 billion for National Labs to accelerate breakthrough energy research

Across the solar supply chain, the IRA includes the following credits:

• Manufacturing credit: 100% credit through 2029, 75% in 2030, 50% in 2031, 25% in 2032.
• Thin film photovoltaic cell and crystalline photovoltaic cell: $.04 per cell capacity in Wdc.
• Photovoltaic wafer: $12/sq. meter.
• Solar grade polysilicon: $3/kg.
• Polymeric backsheet: $0.04/sq. meter.
• Solar module: $0.07 per module capacity in Wdc.
• Torque tube: $0.87/kg.
• Structural fastener: $2.28/kg.
• Central inverter: $0.025 per capacity Wac.
• Commercial inverter: $0.015 per capacity Wac.
• Residential inverter: $0.06 per capacity Wac.
• Microinverter: $0.11 per capacity on Wac.
• Battery module: $10 per battery module capacity kWh.
• Critical mineral: 10% of costs incurred.
• Battery cell: $35 per battery cell capacity kWh.

“With long-term incentives for clean energy deployment and manufacturing, the solar and storage industry is ready to create hundreds of thousands of new jobs and get to work building out the next era of American energy leadership,” said Abigail Ross Hopper, president of the Solar Energy Industries Association.