First Solar Inaugurates 120MW Solar Module Manufacturing Plant in Frankfurt (Oder)
Frankfurt (Oder), Germany, July 9, 2007
Source: First Solar Inc. press release
http://www.firstsolar.com/story?id=219
First Solar, Inc. (Nasdaq:FSLR) announced that the Company’s new solar module manufacturing plant in Frankfurt
(Oder) is to be formally inaugurated by Germany’s environment minister Sigmar Gabriel and Bruce Sohn, President of First Solar. “As the world’s largest solar power market, Germany is the ideal location for our production facility. The First Solar location in Frankfurt (Oder) is testament to the successful environmental and economic policies in Germany. The favorable investment climate was made possible by the consistent promotion of environmentally friendly energies through the renewable energy act (EEG),” explained Bruce Sohn, President of First Solar.
The opening ceremony also is to be attended by Ulrich Junghanns, Economics Minister of the Federal State of Brandenburg, Martin Patzelt, mayor of Frankfurt (Oder) as well as US Ambassador William R. Timken Jr. “First Solar makes an important contribution for the development of renewable energies in Germany with the new solar factory in Frankfurt/Oder. The creation of over 400 new jobs is a substantial factor for the employment in the region and the production of economical solar modules contribute substantially to the climatic protection. I am pleased about this investment of a US enterprise in Germany,” said Federal Secretary of the Environment Sigmar Gabriel.
“Due to the generous support of the German government, the Federal State of Brandenburg and the City of Frankfurt (Oder) we were able to construct a new plant in the shortest of times. So far, we have hired more than 400 employees and we are
proud of the highly motivated and educated workforce we have recruited for our production plant,” said Heiner Eichermüller, Vice President of Global Manufacturing of First Solar.
About First Solar
First Solar, Inc. (Nasdaq:FSLR) manufactures solar modules with an advanced thin film semiconductor process that significantly lowers solar electricity costs. By enabling clean renewable electricity at affordable prices, First Solar provides an economic alternative to peak conventional electricity and the related fossil fuel dependence, greenhouse gas
emissions and peak time grid constraints.