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					</table><p>U.S.-based solar module manufacturer <a href="https://www.firstsolar.com/en-IN/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">First Solar</a> reported a fourth-quarter (Q4) net income of $349 million, swinging to profit from last year’s loss of $7.5 million, as the company saw robust demand for its modules in the U.S.</p>
<p>“Despite industry macro challenges such as global oversupply and pricing volatility, we continue to see strong mid to long-term demand, especially in the United States,” said CEO Mark Widmar in a post-earnings conference call with analysts.</p>
<p>Net sales for Q4 2023 rose 33% to $1.2 billion from $0.9 billion in the same period last year, driven by higher module volumes sold, in particular the Series 7 modules and average selling prices (ASP). At the same time, the cost of sales fell by about 30% despite higher net sales, boosting the bottom-line figures.</p>
<p>Gross margin for Q4 was 43%, compared to 47% last year. The decrease was due to the sale of tax credits, a higher mix of non-U.S. factory sales, and legacy production material write-offs.</p>
<p>The company also took a $23 million impairment charge in the quarter from its investment in solar-wafer technology firm <a href="https://cubicpv.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CubicPV</a>, which abandoned its plans to set up a silicon wafer manufacturing facility in the U.S. owing to surging construction costs and declining wafer prices, thus triggering the impairment.</p>
<p><strong>Full Year 2023</strong></p>
<p>For 2023, First Solar posted a net income of $831 million, compared to a loss of $464 million for the full year (FY) 2022. Net sales for 2023 increased 27% to $3.3 billion from $2.6 billion in 2022.</p>
<p>The company attributed the improved results to higher module volumes sold and ASPs. It sold 11.4 GW of modules in 2023, up from 7.3 GW in 2022. The company also reported net bookings of 28.3 GW for 2023.</p>
<p>First Solar produced a record 12.1 GW of solar modules in 2023, representing a 33% increase in production over 2022. The company expects to expand manufacturing capacity to 25 GW by the end of 2026, including 14 GW of U.S. capacity.</p>
<p>Earlier this year, the company <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/first-solar-module-manufacturing-facility-in-tamil-nadu" target="_blank" rel="noopener">inaugurated</a> its fully vertically integrated solar manufacturing facility in Tamil Nadu, India. The India facility, with a nameplate capacity of 3.3 GW, joins the ranks of First Solar’s operational factories in the U.S., Malaysia, and Vietnam.</p>
<p>Last year, the company <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/first-solar-ira-tax-credits" target="_blank" rel="noopener">entered</a> into two separate tax credit transfer agreements to sell $500 million and up to $200 million of Inflation Reduction Act advanced manufacturing production tax credits to Fiserv, a financial technology services provider. The tax credits are the outcome of the sale of solar modules produced in 2023 by First Solar’s operational manufacturing facilities in the U.S., including its recently commissioned third Ohio factory.</p>


First Solar Swings to Profit in Q4 on Strong US Demand


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					</table><p>Germany-based solar wafer manufacturer <a href="https://www.nexwafe.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NexWafe </a>has set up a subsidiary in the U.S. to explore establishing a multi-gigawatt scale production facility with an initial capacity of 6 GW.</p>
<p>The North American facility will leverage NexWafe&#8217;s production technology from its 250 MW <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/germanys-nexwafe-green-solar-wafer-production" target="_blank" rel="noopener">under-construction</a> commercial facility in Bitterfeld, Germany.</p>
<p>According to NexWafe, its patented green solar wafer manufacturing simplifies polysilicon production reduces energy use and production time, helping cut production costs for n-type monocrystalline wafers. The company claims its gas-to-wafer manufacturing process minimizes waste, resulting in less expensive wafers than conventional wafers.</p>
<p>The company said it is actively working on securing strategic partnerships, assessing potential manufacturing locations and the associated regional incentives, and securing offtake agreements for domestic wafer supply. It will also leverage incentives available under the Inflation Reduction Act, which aims to spur green manufacturing in the U.S.</p>
<p>&#8220;Multiple top-tier solar companies have committed to advanced PV cell and module manufacturing at a multi-gigawatt scale across the U.S.,&#8221; said Jonathan Pickering, VP of Business Development, adding that NexWafe is targeting this opportunity by developing a gigawatt-scale facility to manufacture American-made, thin silicon wafers to serve U.S. customers.</p>
<p>&#8220;We can do so while achieving a 60% reduction in the carbon footprint compared to today&#8217;s technology,&#8221; he said.</p>
<p>NexWafe had secured €30 million (~$32 million) from a group of investors, including <a href="https://www.ril.com/OurBusinesses/New-Energy.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reliance New Energy</a>, to accelerate the construction of its green solar wafers production facility in Bitterfeld. Reliance also plans to build a large-scale wafer manufacturing facility in India using NexWafe&#8217;s processes and technology.</p>
<p>The company had also said that it would work with one of its other investors, <a href="https://aramcoventures.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Aramco Ventures</a>, on a green solar wafer production facility that will be built in Saudi Arabia with participation from the latter&#8217;s $1.5 billion Sustainability Fund.</p>
<p>NexWafe&#8217;s investors also include ATHOS Venture and former Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Keshik Capital, led by his son Alex Turnbull.</p>


Germany’s NexWafe Eyes US for Multi-GW Solar Wafer Plant

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