Solar module manufacturer Maxeon Solar Technologies has announced a 3 GW TOPCon photovoltaic-silicon cell and shingled-cell performance line solar module manufacturing facility to be developed in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

With an estimated investment exceeding $1 billion, the project’s realization is contingent upon a successful financial closure facilitated by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Title 17 Clean Energy Financing Program.

The facility, which will manufacture the company’s latest iteration of TOPCon photovoltaic-silicon cell technology, aims to help meet the escalating demand for domestically produced solar cells and modules in the U.S.

The projected manufacturing capacity is roughly twice the size of the largest operational silicon solar manufacturing plant in the U.S.

Maxeon is slated to commence construction in the initial quarter of 2024, with the ramp-up of factory operations scheduled to initiate in 2025.

The facility is expected to cater to both the expansive utility-scale power project sector and the burgeoning market of distributed generation rooftop solar applications.

Maxeon is presently in the process of due diligence pertaining to its loan application.

Speaking on the development, Bill Mulligan, CEO of Maxeon, said, “Our new solar cell and panel facility in New Mexico is an ambitious and concrete response to the need to decarbonize the U.S. economy while creating permanent highly-skilled local manufacturing and engineering jobs. Maxeon is well-positioned to play a significant role in this process by virtue of our experience in deploying and operating world-class solar cell and panel technology.”

Maxeon has identified a 160-acre parcel of land in the Mesa Del Sol community as the optimal location for the facility.

This addition to Maxeon’s global manufacturing network, which already encompasses facilities in Mexico, Malaysia, and the Philippines, is expected to underscore the company’s strategic expansion into New Mexico.

The company posted $324 million in revenue for the fourth quarter of the financial year 2022, a year-over-year (YoY) increase of 46%. The company shipped 734 MW of solar modules during the quarter, up 27% YoY from 577 MW.

Earlier, Maxeon had announced that it would supply approximately 400 MW of its high-efficiency shingled bifacial performance line solar modules to Origis Energy, a solar and storage developer. The modules will be used in Origis’ U.S. utility-scale projects.