First Solar buys OptiSolar projects for $400 million in stock to expand portfolio

03 March 2009

Arizona-based First Solar Inc., the world's largest maker of thin-film solar power modules, agreed to take over a portfolio of utility-sized projects from closely held OptiSolar for $400 million in stock to expand sales in the US.

The projects include a 550-megawatt plant being developed for San Francisco-based Pacific Gas &Electric Corp, a group of 1,300 megawatts of utility orders under negotiation and land rights on about 136,000 acres that could handle up to 19,000 megawatts, Phoenix-based First Solar said in a statement today.

First Solar CEO and Chairman Mike Ahearn said the pipeline is attractive because of what it offers the Tempe- (Arizona) based developer of thin film photovoltaic panels, including the 136,000 acres or about 210 square miles of land. Most of the development and rights are in California. Of the total project, land holding about 6.5 gigawatts of potential power would be located near existing infrastructure and transmission lines, meaning the projects could move quickly, he said.

First Solar last week reduced its sales forecast for the year because of the recession and that it plans to invest in some projects for which customers have been unable to secure financing on their own.

''Combining the solar industry's cost-performance leader with a multi-gigawatt solar power project portfolio and the expertise of a world-class development team is a tremendous step forward for utility-scale PV solar generation,'' said Randy Goldstein, CEO of the Hayward, California-based OptiSolar.

For its part, OptiSolar will focus on manufacturing its thin-film solar panels, made with amorphous silicon technology, with plans to sell them to installers and project developers, said OptiSolar spokesman Alan Bernheimer.