In this week’s news roundup, we discuss an expansion in American solar manufacturing capability, and a major addition to the world’s largest solar battery plant.
Silfab announces the opening of a new plant near Seattle
Canadian solar manufacturer Silfab recently announced that it would be opening a new shipping facility in Burlington, Washington. This facility is Silfab’s third manufacturing plant in North America, and it will double their manufacturing capacity from 400 to 800 megawatts (MW). The plant will primarily use automated processes for cell sorting, glass washing, soldering, and cell alignment. Silfab stated that this production process helps to guarantee a low defect rate for all of their products.
This plant will primarily produce Silfab’s new 370 Watt Prime STC series panel, which features an efficiency rating of 20.2 percent, and a performance warranty of 30 years.
World’s largest battery storage facility adds another 100 MW of capacity
Moss Landing Energy Storage facility, located in Monterey County, California, has just increased its storage capacity to 400 MW. This facility is owned by Vistra Corp and operates under a long term agreement with PG&E. The facility produces a similar amount of power to a conventional natural gas power plant, and serves as a backup for the increased nighttime demand on power plants in California due to the extensive installed solar capacity in the state.
Large scale battery storage facilities like Moss Landing are likely to become more common over the next few years. According to a report published by the Energy Information Administration (EIA), future large scale battery capacity is likely to increase the total installed capacity to 10,000 MW by 2023. These facilities will provide support to the grid as installed solar capacity increases.
