Corning, a leading manufacturer of glass and ceramics materials, has announced plans to establish a solar wafer manufacturing facility in mid-Michigan, with an estimated investment of $900 million. The plant is expected to benefit from tax credits under the Biden administration, as reported by The Detroit News.
The Michigan Economic Development Corporation initially revealed plans for the solar manufacturing plant in February, though specific details regarding wafer production were not disclosed at that time. Since the Inflation Reduction Act was passed in 2022, the solar sector has attracted nearly $19 billion in private investments, with advanced manufacturing tax credits driving numerous tax credit transfer deals in the third quarter of 2024.
While many recent announcements have focused on solar modules and cells, there have been fewer developments in ingots and wafers. Notably, Hanwha Qcells, a Korean-owned solar manufacturer, is developing a vertically integrated 3.3GW facility in Georgia that includes ingot-to-module production.
Other key players in the ingot and wafer market include German-based NexWafe, which is exploring a potential 6GW annual capacity in the US, and Norwegian firm NorSun, which plans to build a 5GW ingot and wafer plant in Oklahoma.
Corning's announcement aligns with recent actions by the US Department of Treasury, which has introduced a 25% tax credit for solar ingots and wafers, alongside finalizing rules for the 45X Advanced Manufacturing Production Tax Credit. This new tax credit framework, combined with Corning's investment, is poised to strengthen the upstream supply chain in the US, addressing the current imbalance between the announced capacities for solar cells and modules compared to ingots and wafers.
