Evergreen Solar Inc., a manufacturer of solar power products with its proprietary, low-cost String Ribbon wafer technology, on April 17 announced its intention to significantly expand its manufacturing operations with a new facility expected to be located on the campus of the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MTC) in Westborough, Mass. The company’s board of directors has approved the construction of a new $150 million facility that will increase Evergreen Solar’s production capacity in Massachusetts by 70 megawatts and double its employee base in the state to more than 600 employees. Evergreen Solar currently operates its prototype production and manufacturing facility in Marlboro, Mass.
“Over the last three years, we have shown that our string ribbon technology is scalable as we have increased annual sales fourfold to approximately $100 million in 2006 through our joint venture in Europe,” said Richard M. Feldt, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Evergreen Solar. “Our new plant in Massachusetts is a natural evolution of this market penetration as we focus on the significant opportunities in the United States. Several states aggressively pursued our planned new facility. Governor Deval Patrick’s vision for broad scale solar power adoption through an innovative solar incentive program as well as the creative financial incentive programs that the governor, the legislature and the town of Westborough are expected to provide were key factors in our decision to expand in Massachusetts.”
“Evergreen Solar is one of the companies that is going to help us get clean energy right,” said Governor Patrick. “I am proud that my economic development and energy and environmental affairs teams are able to help Evergreen Solar grow and thrive right here in Massachusetts, and give us a head start toward building a clean energy economy.”
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts support program is expected to include up to $23 million in grants, up to $17.5 million in low-interest loans and a low-cost, 30-year lease of MTC land. Construction of Evergreen Solar’s new facility is planned to begin in early fall 2007 with completion expected in late 2008.
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