Canadian company plans $800M solar panel factory in southeast Indiana

Ontario-based Canadian Solar Inc. will build an $800 million solar panel factory in southeastern Indiana that will employ about 1,200 workers once production is fully ramped up, the company said Monday.

Canadian Solar said it will build the new photovoltaic cell factory at the River Ridge Commerce Center in Jeffersonville, an Ohio River city located just north of Louisville, Kentucky.

Production is expected to begin by the end of 2025, with the plant producing the equivalent of about 20,000 high-power solar panels per day, said the company, which is headquartered in Guelph, Ontario.

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The finished solar cells will be shipped to Canadian Solar’s module assembly facility in Mesquite, Texas.

“Establishing this factory is a key milestone that will enable us to better serve our U.S. customers with the most advanced technology in the industry,” said Dr. Shawn Qu, founder and CEO of Canadian Solar.

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Canadian Solar said it plans to begin hiring for new positions in mid-2024 and will ramp up hiring in early 2025 to fully staff the Jeffersonville plant.

Gov. Eric Holcomb said in a statement that the new solar panel plant in Jeffersonville “will put our skilled Hoosier workforce at the center of cultivating solar power, making energy efficient panels more accessible to consumers across the country.”

The Indiana Economic Development Corporation has committed to providing Canadian Solar with up to $9.7 million in tax credits and up to $400,000 in conditional training grants, among other incentives. The company can claim those state benefits once investments are made and employees are hired and trained.