SOLARCYCLE is making big strides in building a U.S. solar panel recycling ecosystem, and this is one of the biggest: Investing an estimated $344 million to open a solar glass manufacturing facility in Cedartown, Georgia. The plant is scheduled to begin construction in 2024 and will be operational in 2026.
The facility will be the first-of-its-kind in the country to use recycled materials from retired solar panels to make new solar glass. The company’s recycling technology allows it to extract 95% of the value from used solar panels.
“SOLARCYCLE’s first-of-its-kind facility is a transformational investment for the Polk County community and will help drive its economy for years to come,” said Georgia Governor Brian Kemp.
SOLARCYCLE currently operates facilities in Odessa, Texas and Mesa, Arizona – and has inked long-term partnerships with more than forty of the nation’s largest solar energy companies to reuse and recycle their solar panels, including Georgia-based solar manufacturer Qcells.
SOLARCYCLE’s new facility in Georgia will position the company as one of the first manufacturers of specialized glass for crystalline-silicon (c-Si) photovoltaics in the U.S., with the capacity to make 5 to 6 GWs worth of solar glass every year.
The glass will be sold directly back to the domestic solar manufacturers and fill a critical gap in the country’s supply chain to build more solar panels in America.
SOLARCYCLE will construct a new manufacturing facility located at Cedartown North Business Park, a Georgia Ready for Accelerated Development (GRAD) certified site in Cedartown.
“SOLARCYCLE provides a critical piece to the integrated solar supply chain we are building in Georgia, and we could not be happier that they approached our Georgia Center of Innovation team at a trade show,” said Commissioner Pat Wilson.
— Solar Builder magazine
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