Jennifer M. Granholm Secretary, U.S. Department of Energy | Official Website
The Biden-Harris Administration has announced an investment of $71 million, including $16 million from the President's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, to boost the US solar energy supply chain and open new markets for solar technologies. The funding will support 18 projects across 10 states.
As part of President Biden's Investing in America agenda, the US Department of Energy (DOE) made this announcement today. The selected projects aim to address gaps in national solar manufacturing capacity, including equipment, silicon ingots and wafers, and both silicon and thin-film solar cell manufacturing. The projects will also explore new markets for solar technologies such as dual-use photovoltaic (PV) applications, including building-integrated PV and agrivoltaics.
"These efforts complement and strengthen the Biden-Harris Administration's goal of rapidly deploying clean energy to help achieve net-zero emissions by 2050," stated the press release. These initiatives also promote the Biden-Harris Administration's Justice40 initiative, which set a target that 40% of overall benefits from certain federal investments in climate and clean energy flow to disadvantaged communities burdened by pollution and underinvestment.
"The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to creating a US-made solar energy supply chain that drives innovation, reduces costs for families, and generates jobs across the country," said US Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. "Thanks to historic funding and actions from the president's clean energy agenda, we can deploy more solar power—the cheapest form of energy—to millions more Americans with US-made solar panels."
The DOE has selected three projects for its Silicon Solar Manufacturing Incubator Program and Dual-Use Photovoltaic Incubator Program. This investment will enable new solar companies to test their technologies with a view to securing capital for expanding manufacturing—accelerating their path to market.
The ten selected projects are:
- Re:Build Manufacturing (Nashua, NH): $1.9 million
- Silfab Solar Cells (Fort Mill, SC): $5 million
- Ubiquity Solar (Hazelwood, MO): $11.2 million
- Appalachian Renewable Power (Stewart, OH): $1.6 million
- GAF Energy (San Jose, CA): $1.6 million
- Noria Energy Holdings (Sausalito, CA): $1.6 million
- RCAM Technologies (Boulder, CO): $600,000
- The R&D Lab (Petaluma, CA): $1,000,000
- Silfab Solar WA (Bellingham, WA): $400,000
- Wabash (Lafayette, IN): $1.6 million
The DOE has also chosen eight projects for its Program to Advance Thin-Film Solar Photovoltaic Energy in the US. Four of these will address opportunities to improve efficiency and reinforce the supply chain of CdTe systems.
The selected projects are:
- First Solar (Tempe, AZ and Perrysburg, OH): $6 million
- Cubic PV (Bedford, MA): $6 million
- Tandem PV (San Jose, CA): $4.7 million
- Swift Solar (San Carlos, CA): $7 million
- 5N Plus (Montreal, Canada): $1.6 million
- First Solar again: $15 million
- Brightspot Automation (Boulder, CO): $1.6 million
- Tau Science (Redwood City, CA): $2.1 million
Please note that selection for award negotiations does not constitute a commitment by the DOE to make an award or provide funding.
