WASHINGTON—The biggest American-owned solar-panel maker is set to announce plans Wednesday to invest $680 million in a new Ohio factory, in one of the largest bets on domestic solar manufacturing since China began dominating the industry a decade ago.
First Solar Inc., FSLR 1.27% based in Tempe, Ariz., said it plans to begin construction after necessary permits and local incentives have been secured and is aiming to open the plant early in 2023.
The factory, which would be the company’s third in Ohio, is expected to initially produce enough solar panels to produce 3 gigawatts of power annually, or enough to power about 570,000 homes.
Combined, the three plants by 2025 would produce panels that could generate 6 gigawatts of power annually, or a little more than half of all solar panels the company estimates will be produced annually in the U.S. by then, company chief executive Mark Widmar said.
Mr. Widmar said the investment reflected the growth of the American market and what he viewed as bipartisan government commitment to encourage domestic manufacturing in alternative energy.
But, Ohio Republicans have other ideas…
The Ohio Senate passed legislation Wednesday granting new powers to county commissions to scuttle wind and solar development projects.
Senate Bill 52 would require the green energy developers — before filing a separate application with the state Power Siting Board that currently exists in law — to hold a public hearing with advance notice to local officials.
County commissions could then pass resolutions to ban wind or solar projects outright or limit them to certain “energy development districts” in the county.
The bill passed on a 20-13 vote, with five Republicans joining all eight members of the Democratic caucus in opposition.
A fellowship of unlikely allies opposed the bill, including the green energy industry and its advocates, utility companies like American Electric Power, oil drillers like BP, the Chamber of Commerce, the Ohio Farm Bureau, and the Ohio Manufacturing Association.
The bill’s critics argued the Ohio Power Siting Board already imposes a rigorous application process that spans pricey submissions, environmental reviews, public hearings, staff investigations and a decision from seven voting board members (comprised mostly of the governor’s cabinet heads).
To be completely fair, a number of soft-headed lefties have been sucked in to the anti-solar rhetoric, much of which is knowingly crafted to pull them in.
Rural Ohio is under attack! Massive industrial solar farms are being forced on our rural communities with little notice and without regard to the lasting impact on the environment and citizens. These fields are destroying our valuable fertile farmland that feeds our country! Our bald eagles, peregrine falcons, horned owls, endangered mussels, wild turkeys, deer and more will also be threatened by increased runoff into our creeks, 10′ chain link fences that will surround the fields will change their migration and increased risk of fires to name a few. The full impact on avian migration and daily life is not yet determined. Homeowners are being surrounded by hundreds of acres of solar panels that contain toxic substances and may expose them to high levels of EMFs and residential wells could be affected by any toxic elements released from damaged panels as would our creeks and beyond. The monies promised are not enough to offset the extreme losses in property values (with that comes less property taxes), the wasteland that will remain when the companies leave or the program fails or the loss of citizens leaving the area to rid themselves of these hazards. There are other spaces to place these panels-abandoned mines, airports, large factory roofs and sparsely populated areas to name a few. Ohio can do better for it’s citizens! We DESERVE better! Our wildlife DESERVE better! Our environment DESERVES better! Ohio DESERVES better!
Solar energy is under exactly the same kind of attack that wind energy has endured over the last decade, and orchestrated by the same fossil fuel lobbying organizations.
The Antis have ported over the exact same bogus memes, right down to, incredibly, complaints about “noisy” solar panels.
The leaders of these efforts have been exposed for connections to fossil fuel lobbyists, and a pattern of deception.
Ohio NIMBYs out in full force there. Sad.
We had the same thing in Montgomery County, MD when a zoning amendment was voted on by the County Council that would allow a small percentage of land in the Agricultural Reserve to be available for solar. During hearings, one suddenly heard about things like toxic runoff and “industrial” solar, and ultimately the amendment was defeated. We didn’t have a visit from Kevin Martis, but we did have many of the same themes.
Once again people ignore all of the dihydrogen monoxide used in those solar panel plants! Clean energy isn’t clean at all!