This year's Black Friday is a bit early for the solar industry. First Solar announced on Monday that it has signed an agreement to provide up to 5.4 GW of solar panels to bp and Lightsource bp (a 50-50 joint venture between Lightsource and bp) between 2023 and 2025.
The arrangement includes a confirmed order of 4.4 GW and an option of up to 1 GW. According to the terms of the transaction, Lightsource bp will purchase up to 4.3 GW First Solar's ultra-low carbon thin-film solar modules, while bp will purchase up to 1.1 GW. According to Monday’s announcement, the two companies plan to deploy these panels in projects built in Arkansas, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas.
Prior to Monday's transaction, the company's largest sale in history was a 2.4 GW order placed by Intersect Power in February of this year. Prior to this, Leeward Renewable Energy's January 1.8 GW orders topped the list.
First Solar Chief Commercial Officer Georges Antoun said that the unstable energy market and supply chain challenges in the solar industry seem to be prompting solar developers to lock in more and more photovoltaic modules before demand increases.
"The U.S. solar industry is at an important turning point. It must continue to work hard to provide 45% of our country's electricity by 2050, while addressing the risks and uncertainties caused by increasingly unstable solar panel production, pricing, and supply. ," Antoun said. A statement. "This is where we come in... We are very happy that bp and Lightsource bp trust us and our technology to help drive their growth in the United States."
Dennis said that as the demand for solar energy grows, they strive to provide potential off-takers with stable and competitive prices. He expects other solar developers to place large orders on their own.
"For the electricity that these projects can produce, especially large customers, there is a large amount of pent-up and unmet demand," he said. "Given the direction of all trends, I think you will see more developers trying to lock in the certainty of the supply chain so that they can provide customers with stable and low prices."
Dennis said that, especially for developers looking to sell products to large corporate buyers, the speed at which developers execute projects is also a key competitive advantage. But in many cases, the biggest obstacle to the development of new solar projects is not the supply of components, but the delay of interconnection and insufficient transmission.
Dennis said that preferential policies promoted by the Biden administration, such as tax credit extensions and incentives for projects that use US-made materials, may have played a role in the deal. He pointed out that First Solar is an American manufacturer, which may indicate that bp and Lightsource bp are trying to be ahead of other developers in securing solar modules made in the United States.
"[Policies] will drive a large amount of demand for [solar] projects beyond existing projects," Dennis said, "convincing many project developers that they can make longer-term commitments and know that there will be more back-end customers."
Get a free daily newsletter read by industry experts
Topics covered: smart grid technology, clean energy, regulation, power generation, etc.
Renewable energy may create new jobs for all kinds of Americans, but experts say these positions are not always attractive to workers who lose their jobs due to the closure of coal mines and power plants—or not applicable at all.
The former Green Mountain Power CEO stated that she is now sitting "where I can scale climate change solutions faster than the country's most advanced and innovative utility company."
Subscribe to Utility Dive to get headlines, trends and analysis
Topics covered: smart grid technology, clean energy, regulation, power generation, etc.
Get a free daily newsletter read by industry experts
Topics covered: smart grid technology, clean energy, regulation, power generation, etc.
Renewable energy may create new jobs for all kinds of Americans, but experts say these positions are not always attractive to workers who lose their jobs due to the closure of coal mines and power plants—or not applicable at all.
The former Green Mountain Power CEO stated that she is now sitting "where I can scale climate change solutions faster than the country's most advanced and innovative utility company."
Free newsletter covering top industry headlines
Topics covered: smart grid technology, clean energy, regulation, power generation, etc.