Maxeon looking to expand in the US with cell and module assembly plant

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
Maxeon’s module assembly plant in Mexico. Image: Maxeon Solar Technologies.

Solar module supplier Maxeon has started evaluating the possibility of expanding its manufacturing capacity in the US with a cell and module assembly plant.

In a conference call for the first quarter results of 2023, Maxeon’s CEO, Bill Mulligan, said the company was looking to expand its manufacturing capacity due to the opportunities in the US utility-scale market and increased demand from the market, while the company’s application with the Department of Energy Loan Program Office progressed to the due-diligence phase in the previous quarter.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Unlock unlimited access for 12 whole months of distinctive global analysis

Photovoltaics International is now included.

  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Unlimited digital access to the PV Tech Power journal catalogue
  • Unlimited digital access to the Photovoltaics International journal catalogue
  • Access to more than 1,000 technical papers
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

Accelerating the development and deployment of more efficient and cost-effective solar panel technologies has become one of the highest priorities for the company, said Mulligan to PV Tech Premium.

For the first quarter of 2023, Maxeon’s revenue reached US$318 million, up year-on-year from US$223 million in Q1 2022. The Americas contributed the most with US$165 million, while revenue in Europe reached US$127 million in Q1 2023.

The module manufacturer exceeded its adjusted EBITDA with US$30.9 million, an improvement from a negative EBITDA of US$33.5 million in the same period last year sequentially when the company had a negative EBITDA of US$3.7 million in Q4 2022.

Within the US, the company has fully booked its utility-scale capacity for 2025 and allocated parts of 2026 and 2027 already, with the production ramp-up underway – with a 1.8GW module assembly plant in North America nearing full ramp – and the full cell fabrication capacity nearly completed.

Maxeon registered its best shipment volume quarter since its spin-out from residential solar installer SunPower in 2020, with 774MW, a 6% increase sequentially and up almost 60% from Q1 2022. The module manufacturer exceeded its guidance range due to the accelerated ramp-up of its US utility-scale capacity. The Performance Line module continues to increase its share with 576MW versus 198MW for the IBC line.

The company has also ramped up its distributed generation (DG) presence in the US during Q1 2023 and registered the highest average selling price (ASP) in the company’s history, increasing the global blended DG ASP by nearly 3% in the opening quarter of 2023.

Europe’s DG also had a strong quarter, especially in Belgium and France, which showed a volume growth of more than 40% from Q1 2022, with Italy’s commercial segment trending upwards, according to Mulligan. “We expect beyond the panel sales to increase over the course of 2023 with a higher attach rate of microinverters as well as sales from storage and EV charger products.”

“Our strong European footprint allowed us to maintain margins at similar levels to the previous quarter in both percentage and absolute terms despite typical Q1 seasonality trends and increased overall industry supply volumes that created a more competitive pricing environment,” added Mulligan.

Outside of Europe and the US, the company is looking to expand its opportunities in Latin America, Japan and Australia.

In its guidance for the second quarter, the module manufacturer expects to ship between 860-900MW of solar modules and generate a revenue between US$360-400 million, almost 20% up sequentially due to an expected growth in the DG segment in the US as well as higher ASPs.

Furthermore, for the full fiscal year 2023 Maxeon revised its results upwards, with revenues in the range of US$1.4-1.6 billion and an adjusted EBITDA between US$95-120 million.

Conference call transcript from Seeking Alpha.

Read Next

June 24, 2025
Chinese solar manufacturing giant LONGi has signed an agreement with Indonesia’s Pertamina New & Renewable Energy to build a 1.4GW module assembly plant in West Java, Indonesia.
June 23, 2025
Waaree Energies will relocate its proposed 6GW vertically-integrated manufacturing facility for ingots, wafers, cells, and modules in India.
June 17, 2025
The levelised cost of energy (LCOE) for utility-scale solar PV in the US has tightened for a third year in a row, according to Lazard’s latest report.
June 17, 2025
Indian module manufacturer Ahaan Solar has started construction of a 2GW solar module assembly plant in Rohnat, Haryana.
June 13, 2025
Indian solar developer Solarium Green Energy has planned to build a 1GW module manufacturing plant in the western Indian state of Gujarat.
Premium
June 4, 2025
PV Talk: Kiwa PVEL's Tristan Erion-Lorico discusses the latest Module Reliability Scorecard and what it reveals about standards in PV manufacturing.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Upcoming Webinars
June 30, 2025
10am PST / 6pm BST
Solar Media Events
July 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
July 1, 2025
London, UK
Media Partners, Solar Media Events
July 2, 2025
Bangkok, Thailand
Media Partners, Solar Media Events
September 2, 2025
Mexico City, Mexico