MiaSole receives $101.8 million in tax credits to advance solar manufacturing

MiaSole has received two Advanced Energy Manufacturing tax credits totaling US$101.8 million from the Obama Administration for the manufacture of low-cost thin-film cells and modules. A total of US$2.3 billion in tax credits is being allocated for investments in 183 manufacturing facilities for clean energy products across 43 American states.

In order to achieve this goal, MiaSole will add jobs to ramp up its manufacturing facility based in Santa Clara, CA. The number of employees at MiaSole was already increased in 2009 from 150 to 300.

"We believe the award is a reflection of the Department of Energy's confidence in MiaSole's technology and business model," said Dr. Joseph Laia, CEO of the company. "The strong show of support by the Obama Administration is encouraging, and we look forward to ramping our manufacturing capacity and creating jobs aided by these funds. We also view the commitment of the Administration to create green manufacturing jobs as important in positioning the United States towards the future."

More than 500 applications were submitted for the tax credits. The winners were selected based on their commercial viability, domestic job creation, technological innovation, potential for reducing air pollution and greenhouse-gas emissions, and the speed at which the projects would be completed.