PHOENIX, Oct 30 –First Solar, Inc. (Nasdaq: FSLR) (“First Solar” or “the Company”) has signed a non-exclusive patent licensing agreement with CubicPV Inc. (“CubicPV”), granting First Solar access to CubicPV’s issued and pending US patents covering perovskite solar technology. The license further clears the path for First Solar to continue its development of photovoltaic (PV) devices built with a perovskite semiconductor for the US utility-scale, commercial and industrial, and residential markets, and applies to sales and distribution of those products domestically. Other terms were not disclosed.
First Solar, the largest solar manufacturer in the Western Hemisphere and the world’s largest thin film producer, has invested over $2 billion in thin film research and development, including its efforts to advance its perovskite program. The Company’s investments include a new perovskite development line at its Perrysburg, Ohio, campus that produces small form-factor modules featuring a perovskite semiconductor, allowing First Solar to meet key internal milestones in its perovskite development program, including initial-stage efficiency, stability, and manufacturability objectives. It is also investing in a larger pilot line – capable of producing modules equivalent in dimensions to its Series 6 module – in Ohio, which is expected to reach operational readiness in the first half of 2027.
“Commercializing the next generation of PV takes two things. It takes the technology development and manufacturing scaling work our R&D teams are focused on, and it takes freedom to operate, which is what this agreement helps secure,” said Mark Widmar, chief executive officer, First Solar. “We’ve always believed intellectual property rights should be respected, and this is consistent with that. This is a new semiconductor technology with real disruptive potential, and we want to get it right.”
CubicPV has spent over a decade developing, testing and fielding perovskite technology to build a substantial body of foundational patents and intellectual property. Guided by a durability-first philosophy, the Company translates breakthrough science into demonstrated product performance, combining deep technical expertise with scale-able manufacturing processes to accelerate the commercialization of next generation solar technology.
Tim McCaffery, chief executive officer, CubicPV, said, “Access to intellectual property is vital as the industry begins commercializing perovskite and tandem technologies. First Solar’s decision to license our IP is evidence of that shift and shows the relevance of our IP portfolio to the perovskite ecosystem.”
First Solar operates the largest solar technology manufacturing and research and development (R&D) footprint in the Western Hemisphere, with five fully vertically integrated manufacturing facilities operating in Alabama, Louisiana, and Ohio. A sixth operating facility, in South Carolina, onshores final production processes for Series 6 Plus modules initiated by the Company’s international fleet. By the end of 2026, the Company expects to have invested over $5 billion in American manufacturing and R&D infrastructure since 2019, and it expects approximately 17 gigawatts (GW) of US module manufacturing capacity by 2027.