First Solar, Inc. plans to develop 500 to 700 megawatts (MWs) of new photovoltaic (PV) projects in the United States in 2011. That’s more than all the 481 MWs of solar power (PV and concentrated solar thermal) that the Solar Energy Industries Association reported was installed in the United States in 2009. And in 2010, the company expects to complete 175 MWs of solar installations in the United States alone.

First Solar, which is manufacturing thin-film PV at a cost of $0.76 per watt as of July 2010, is a United States-based company and also is the world’s biggest PV manufacturer in terms of production. It is now making aggressive moves to expand growth in its home country as it anticipates growth in Europe—particularly in Germany—to subside.

The company has been busy in North America in 2010. For instance, it will soon announce completion of what is now the world’s largest PV installation, the 80 MW plant in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada, said spokesperson Alan Bernheimer.

First Solar will soon start development on a project outside of Yuma, Ariz., the 290 MW Agua Caliente plant, that will dwarf the Sarnia PV plan—and any PV plant in the world. The company already signed a power purchase agreement with PG&E Corp. for the power produced by the plant.

Overall, First Solar has two plans of attack, selling modules to third-parties that install the arrays, largely on commercial properties, and developing utility-scale projects under power-purchase agreements (PPAs).

The Sarnia plant, for instance, was sold to Enbridge, a Canadian utility.

When developing PPA-type projects, First Solar has avoided ownership.

“Our business model is not to own the utility-scale projects—rather to develop and build them. They are typically sold at the start of construction to another entity, such as an independent power producer,” Bernheimer said. “We do not sell modules directly to consumers. But partners, such as Solar City, install them on residences.”

While the company offered targets for United States developments in the United States in 2010, it has been tightlipped about its other plans.

“We haven't disclosed any other detail on U.S. projected sales, i.e., what volume might move through our development partners as opposed to our project development,” Bernheimer said.

So the amount of PV First Solar will supply to the United States market in 2011 could be higher than the 700 MWs it already plans to build here, a significant amount of the total 2.1 GWs the company plans to produce next year.