South Korean Solar Panel Maker Looking at Texas Plant

Q Cells, owned by South Korean-company Hanwha Solutions, is considering two North Texas locations for a $2 billion solar equipment manufacturing facility. The company is eyeing a parcel on either side of the Dallas-Fort Worth area for the nine-gigawatt-per-year facility. One of the two locations is in the town of Lancaster, near the airport. And the other in Fort Worth southwest of Westland. The company says it will decide on a site by year end and expect to complete the project early in 2024.

Word got out on the potential project when the company filed for Chapter 313 incentives used to get companies to move or build locations in Texas. The company, in exchange for tax abatements, agrees to invest and create jobs in a given school district.

The public filing mentioned that the facility would employ 4,000 workers by the second year of construction and cost at least $1.8 billion to build. Reports indicate a project of this size would require several thousand permanents jobs at the site.