SEG Solar has announced that it plans to establish a PV module manufacturing plant in Houston, Texas, with an anticipated annual capacity of more than 2 gigawatts (GW).

Renewable energy and solar power in Texas

The company said that construction of the facility will commence at the end of 2022, and that it expects it to be fully operational by mid-2023. The plant will be equipped with three state-of-the-art production lines capable of producing high efficiency N-type Topcon solar modules with 182mm or 210mm solar cells.

The development of the facility is the next step in SEG’s long-term product localisation strategy, which is designed to better serve customers in the US, the statement added.

“SEG is very excited to enter the U.S. manufacturing market at this time,” said Jim Wood, CEO of SEG, adding that the establishment of this facility now makes sense on a number of different levels due to the recent incentives for solar manufacturing included in the Inflation Reduction Act and the current legislative climate.”

He explained that the plant will give SEG more control over the supply chain and simplify transportation logistics, thereby providing customers with competitive pricing and greater assurance of on-time deliveries.

Furthermore, components and other materials for the production of the modules at this facility will be sourced from local suppliers in the country, Wood added.

‘Made in the USA’ manufacturing

As a result of this initiative, SEG anticipates that the modules manufactured at the Houston facility will qualify for local content incentives, while also avoiding or significantly reducing many of the tariffs and restrictions facing manufacturers from outside of the US.  

“The modules produced at this facility will be ‘Assembled in the US’ and may also be eligible for certain other certifications,” Wood said.

It is expected that the plant will create as many as 500 new jobs in the local Houston area.

Founded in 2016, SEG is based in Texas and has supplied modules for over 1.2 GW of PV projects in the US market. The company provides high-performance and reliable PV modules for the utility, commercial and residential markets. 

By the end of 2023, SEG expects to ship more than 2GW of PV modules annually.