First Solar has opened the first phase of its $330 million manufacturing facility in Gaffney, South Carolina. The company says the Cherokee County site is intended to add 3.7 gigawatts of annual capacity when fully ramped, bringing its total U.S. manufacturing capacity to 17.7 gigawatts, according to Solar Power World.
The plant currently employs about 500 people, with First Solar expecting that figure to reach 700 by mid-2027 as work on a second phase proceeds, the trade publication reports. Those figures distinguish reported current staffing from a future company target; the target has not yet been reached.
A finishing role in a wider production network
Gaffney’s stated role is to carry out final production steps for First Solar’s Series 6 Plus modules. The company’s Series 6 Plus brochure says its international manufacturing facilities also produce modules in that family, providing context for the product line beyond the new South Carolina site.
The opening adds to First Solar’s U.S. manufacturing investments, but its other projects illustrate different scales and stages. In September 2024, the company announced the inauguration of a separate, fully vertically integrated facility in Lawrence County, Alabama, and said that plant was expected to create more than 800 jobs. That was a projected employment figure for the Alabama site, not a count of workers at Gaffney, according to the company announcement carried by Nasdaq.
A separate example of manufacturing disruption
The Gaffney opening also contrasts with a temporary interruption elsewhere: PV Magazine USA reported on March 6, 2026, that Qcells had returned to normal solar-panel production at its Georgia facilities after a November furlough of 1,000 workers tied to customs-clearance delays. That episode concerns a different company and a specific supply disruption; it does not establish a wider pattern or explain First Solar’s plans in South Carolina.
For Gaffney, the central measure still ahead is whether the planned second phase and hiring ramp bring the facility to its stated capacity and staffing target. The reported 500 workers are the current figure; 700 is a company projection for mid-2027.
