The United States Department of Energy (DOE) will fund $71m to advance the nation’s solar manufacturing capabilities.
The funding will be used to support research, development, and demonstration projects of solar technology manufacturers across the US to reinforce the country’s solar energy supply chain.
Selected projects will solve gaps across the US solar manufacturing supply chain, such as equipment, silicon ingots and wafers, and silicon and thin-film solar cell manufacturing.
The funding will also enable markets for solar technologies such as dual-use photovoltaic (PV) applications, including building-integrated PV and agrivoltaics.
Jennifer Granholm, the US Secretary of Energy, commented: “The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to building an American-made solar supply chain that boosts innovation, drives down costs for families, and delivers jobs across the nation.
“Thanks to historic funding and actions from the President’s clean energy agenda, we’re able to deploy more solar power – the cheapest form of energy – to millions more Americans with panels stamped made in the USA.”
Advancing domestic solar manufacturing
The DOE has chosen three projects for the Silicon Solar Manufacturing and Dual-Use Photovoltaics Incubator programme to advance onshore silicon wafer and cell manufacturing technologies.
This funding aims to help new solar companies validate their innovations and qualify for capital to scale up production, speeding up their journey to market.
Additionally, seven projects will focus on dual-use PV technologies to electrify buildings, decarbonise transportation, and minimise land-use conflicts.
Selected projects include:
- Re:Build Manufacturing
- Silfab Solar Cells
- Ubiquity Solar
- Appalachian Renewable Power
- GAF Energy
- Noria Energy Holdings
- RCAM Technologies
- The R&D Lab
- Silfab Solar WA
- Wabash
Boosting thin-film PV manufacturing
Thin-film PV technologies, such as cadmium telluride (CdTe) and perovskites, offer potential advantages over dominant silicon technology, including lower energy and manufacturing costs, simpler supply chains, and higher lifetime energy yields.
Of the eight projects selected by the DOE for the Advancing U.S. Thin-Film Solar Photovoltaics funding programme, four will focus on enhancing efficiency, reducing costs, and strengthening the supply chain for CdTe systems.
Identified by DOE’s Solar Photovoltaics Supply Chain Review as a key opportunity, CdTe can help expand domestic solar panel production.
Efficient use and recycling of materials in panel manufacturing can further boost CdTe PV competitiveness.
The remaining four projects will develop innovative tandem PV devices, combining traditional PV technologies like silicon and copper indium gallium diselenide (CIGS) with perovskites, a promising thin-film PV nearing market readiness.
Additionally, one project aims to leverage the US-Canada trade partnership to increase the supply of tellurium in the United States.
Projects selected are:
- First Solar
- Cubic PV
- Tandem PV
- Swift Solar
- 5N Plus
- First Solar
- Brightspot Automation
- Tau Science
This strategic investment by the DOE underscores the commitment to fostering innovation in solar technology and strengthening the domestic solar supply chain.
This initiative not only promotes technological advancements but also paves the way for a cleaner, more resilient energy future, benefiting millions of Americans with cost-effective, homegrown solar power.
