Solar cell and module manufacturer Qcells has announced the completion of its expansion at its solar panel manufacturing facility in Dalton, Georgia, adding 2 GW of new capacity and bringing the factory’s total output to over 5.1 GW.

The company said the Dalton facility is now the largest solar manufacturing plant in the Western Hemisphere and the first solar panel factory to be built since the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).

This expansion increases production capacity and introduces two new solar products: the Q.TRON G2 residential solar panel and a bifacial panel tailored for the commercial and utility sectors.

The Dalton factory is now set to manufacture nearly 30,000 solar panels daily.

Looking beyond Dalton, Qcells’ investment extends to developing a fully integrated solar supply chain factory in Cartersville, Georgia. The facility will handle the production of solar ingots, wafers, cells, and finished panels.

By 2024, with the combined production capacity of the Dalton and Cartersville facilities, Qcells expects to reach 8.4 GW of solar production annually.

Justin Lee, CEO of Qcells, expressed his enthusiasm for the company’s expansion and its larger mission: “Completing this factory marks the third expansion we’ve made in Dalton, and it’s just the beginning of Qcells’ larger mission to build a fully integrated solar supply chain in America. The Inflation Reduction Act and the efforts of Georgia’s economic development team helped make these ambitious plans possible, and with it, thousands of careers in clean energy.”

Qcells opened its first factory in Georgia in 2019, initially manufacturing 1.7 GW solar capacity. The investment was partly made possible due to Section 201 tariffs on solar cells.

Last year, the company announced plans to add 1.4 GW to its manufacturing output.

The company said its production in Georgia alone is expected to prevent more than 12 million metric tons of CO2 equivalent per year, contributing to the growth of domestic solar manufacturing.

The achievement marks the first phase of Qcells’ $2.5 billion investment plan unveiled in January 2023.