Understanding the growth of solar cell manufacturing in the United States is potentially the most important part of a domestic value-chain coming to fruition. And quite rightly, this topic will be examined in detail at the forthcoming Solar Manufacturing USA 2026 event in Austin, Texas on 22-23 September 2026.
Having a thriving solar cell landscape cannot be underestimated. Cell production may be the next logical part of the c-Si value-chain to develop after module assembly; but its importance extends way beyond simply a sequential move upstream from modules.
Technical leadership in cell fabrication is what defines a domestic PV manufacturing ecosystem, with cell production leaders commanding a role that cannot be met by any other part of the value-chain.
Therefore, the participation of TALON PV was considered pivotal to the Solar Manufacturing USA 2026 event, with TALON PV poised to emerge as one of the largest producers of c-Si cells in the United States by 2030.
As the preparations for the event gain traction, I decided to have a chat with TALON PV’s Co-Founder and CEO, Adam Tesanovich, to explore the motivation for TALON PV’s involvement in the U.S. solar manufacturing sector and to understand how the company plans to evolve in the coming years.
Before outlining our chat, what is it about solar cell fabrication that is so different to module assembly, wafer slicing, and ingot pulling? In the next section, I seek to explain this and how the solar industry has been shaped by companies prioritizing this part of the value-chain.
Since the solar industry moved into commercial-scale mass production status just over 20 years ago, efforts to create viable pure-play solar cell operations have focused on countries across Asia: except notably the original Q-Cells AG (that filed for bankruptcy in 2011).
Typically, companies have entered at the cell-only stage of the value-chain to be the feed sources for more dominant module suppliers, generally adhering to mainstream cell technologies and not seeking to make any meaningful push towards cell roadmap progression.
This was seen during the early days of China’s PV manufacturing growth, with companies such as China Sunergy and JA Solar initially set up to supply cells to more established module companies.
Across Taiwan, this approach largely summarized the entire rise-and-fall of the country’s PV manufacturing exploits – Gintech, Motech, Neo Solar Power, Solartech and others.
While many of these companies transitioned to selling modules (and mostly consuming in-house cell supply), others that retained pure-play cell status were typically squeezed by virtue of having no inherent technology differentiation or stranded without any secondary revenue streams.
Over the past 10 years, similar narratives were played out at companies such as Runergy, Solarspace, and Aiko, with each of these companies seeking the module-sales route as the pathway to market relevance. Currently, Yingfa is the main proponent of the pure-play cell model in China, with the company being a feed to the likes of LONGi, Jinko Solar, Trina Solar, JA Solar, Canadian Solar and VSun.
However, cell manufacturing is the part of the value-chain where technology differentiation is most pronounced – cell architectures and process flows define the modules sold to downstream customers.
Therefore, with cell manufacturing now the most critical part of the value-chain to onshore in the United States, it is essential for the domestic sector to understand which companies will be the leading cell suppliers.
Earlier this week, I caught up with Adam Tesanovich, the CEO at TALON PV – a company that is on track to be one of the leading U.S. cell producers from 2027 onwards.
[Finlay]
Can we go back to the initial drivers for you, in terms of forming TALON PV and deciding to focus on the cell stage of the value chain?
[Adam]
When we founded TALON PV, we stepped back and looked across the entire U.S. photovoltaic supply chain and asked a simple question: where is the greatest opportunity to create long-term value while strengthening American manufacturing?
The answer was solar cells.
The United States installed nearly 50 GW of solar in 2024 and continues to be one of the fastest-growing solar markets in the world. Yet at the time TALON was founded, domestic cell manufacturing represented only a small fraction of domestic demand, leaving one of the most important portions of the value chain dependent on overseas production.
We believed closing that gap represented one of the greatest industrial opportunities in America.
What reinforced that conviction was the growing realization that electricity demand in the United States was beginning to accelerate again after years of relatively modest growth. Artificial intelligence, hyperscale data centers, advanced manufacturing, electrification, and industrial reshoring are creating a new generation of power demand unlike anything the industry has experienced in decades.
While modules are the most visible component of the industry, the cell is where much of the technology, intellectual property, process innovation, and value creation occur. If the United States wanted to build a globally competitive photovoltaic manufacturing sector, domestic cell production was essential.
From the beginning, our vision extended beyond simply adding manufacturing capacity. We wanted to create a platform capable of commercializing innovation, strengthening domestic supply chains, and supporting the long-term growth of American energy manufacturing.
That vision ultimately led to our partnerships with First Solar, Fraunhofer ISE, NEXUS GreenTech, and TALON Technologies Germany. It also led us to pursue domestic initiatives involving photovoltaic silver paste, screen-printing technologies, advanced manufacturing consumables, workforce development, and non-FEOC manufacturing infrastructure.
That became the foundation of TALON. Our objective is to establish the United States as a long-term leader in advanced photovoltaic manufacturing, beginning with the most technologically important stage of the value chain: the solar cell.
[Finlay]
Since that early decision, the U.S. sector has made significant moves toward having a credible domestic silicon-based PV manufacturing base. Have things evolved as you expected and has anything occurred that caused any change in TALON’s long-term plans?
[Adam]
The pace of development has exceeded our expectations.
When TALON was founded, there were legitimate questions about whether the United States could rebuild a competitive photovoltaic manufacturing base. Today, those questions have largely shifted from “Can it be done?” to “How quickly can it be scaled?”
Since passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, the United States has announced tens of gigawatts of new module, cell, and wafer manufacturing capacity. What began as a conversation about reshoring manufacturing has evolved into the creation of an entirely new domestic industrial sector.
What has changed most is not our core thesis, but our appreciation for how important technology commercialization, supply-chain resilience, workforce development, and domestic manufacturing ecosystems will be to long-term success.
Early discussions focused primarily on factory construction and nameplate capacity. As the industry has matured, it has become increasingly clear that manufacturing capacity alone is not enough. Long-term competitiveness will depend on technology leadership, supply-chain security, automation, intellectual property, and the ability to continuously introduce innovation into production.
That evolution has reinforced TALON’s strategy rather than changed it.
From the beginning, we believed a successful domestic cell manufacturer would need strong technology partnerships, resilient supply chains, advanced manufacturing expertise, and a clear pathway for bringing next-generation technologies into production. Those themes have only become more important over time.
Perhaps the biggest evolution has been the expansion of our technology commercialization strategy. Through Fraunhofer ISE, NEXUS GreenTech, and TALON Technologies Germany, we are building a direct bridge between research, pilot-scale validation, and commercial manufacturing. That platform allows us to evaluate future technologies, strengthen domestic supply chains, and accelerate commercialization before innovations are deployed at gigawatt scale in the United States.
The core thesis remains remarkably consistent. We believed the United States needed domestic cell manufacturing. We believed technology leadership would matter as much as manufacturing capacity. And we believed long-term success would require building an ecosystem rather than simply constructing a factory.
Today, those convictions are stronger than ever.
[Finlay]
Compared to some of the existing module producers in the United States that are currently, or planning to, backward integrate to cell production, how does TALON PV differ mostly here in terms of the cell production stage?
[Adam]
Most companies entering cell manufacturing today are doing so to support their own module businesses.
TALON is taking a different approach.
We are building an independent advanced cell manufacturing platform designed to serve multiple customers across North America rather than a single captive module operation. Our initial Texas facility is being designed for 4.8 GW of annual production capacity, enough to support approximately seven million solar modules per year.
We believe that independence allows us to focus entirely on technology, manufacturing excellence, and supply-chain development at the cell stage of the value chain.
The first differentiator is technology.
TALON selected advanced Physical Vapor Deposition, or PVD, as a core component of our manufacturing architecture. While much of the global TOPCon industry has been built around PECVD-based approaches, we believe PVD offers meaningful advantages in process control, material utilization, environmental performance, manufacturing flexibility, and long-term technology scalability.
The second differentiator is intellectual property and technology access.
Through our licensing relationship involving First Solar’s TetraSun technology portfolio and our collaboration with Fraunhofer ISE, TALON enters the market with what we believe is one of the strongest freedom-to-operate positions among announced U.S. cell manufacturers.
That foundation is further strengthened through TALON Technologies Germany, our commercialization platform established with NEXUS GreenTech and Fraunhofer ISE. Through TALON Technologies, we can evaluate emerging technologies, validate process improvements, optimize manufacturing yields, and de-risk future innovations before introducing them into commercial production in Texas.
Very few manufacturers have a direct pathway connecting research, pilot-scale validation, and gigawatt-scale manufacturing.
The third differentiator is supply-chain strategy.
Approximately 90% of our planned manufacturing equipment investment originates from Europe, with the balance sourced primarily from South Korea. Our manufacturing platform is being built around non-FEOC equipment, software, automation systems, process controls, and intellectual property.
The fourth differentiator is domestic ecosystem development.
Beyond cell production, TALON is actively supporting domestic manufacturing capabilities for critical inputs such as photovoltaic silver paste, screen-printing technologies, and other strategic materials that today remain largely imported.
Most manufacturers are building capacity.
TALON is building an advanced manufacturing platform that combines technology commercialization, domestic supply-chain development, workforce training, and continuous innovation. We believe that broader approach will create a durable long-term competitive advantage.
[Finlay]
Let’s look closer at the relationship with Fraunhofer ISE and the newly created NEXUS GreenTech. This is clearly a major differentiating factor compared to almost all other cell plans by companies in the United States today. Where do you see the advantages with these partners as TALON PV moves from initial factory ramp-up to ongoing cell operations and technology improvements?
[Adam]
TALON Technologies Germany is the commercialization engine of our broader strategy. Established with NEXUS GreenTech and supported by Fraunhofer ISE, it creates a direct bridge between world-class photovoltaic research and commercial manufacturing.
While many companies have access to research and others have manufacturing capacity, very few have a dedicated platform designed to convert innovation into production-ready technologies.
Fraunhofer ISE has been at the forefront of photovoltaic innovation for decades and has contributed to technologies that have ultimately been deployed across hundreds of gigawatts of global solar manufacturing capacity. Through our collaboration, TALON gains access not only to world-class technical expertise, but also to one of the most advanced photovoltaic research ecosystems in the world.
To translate that research into commercial outcomes, TALON and NEXUS GreenTech established TALON Technologies Germany as a dedicated technology-development and commercialization platform.
Through TALON Technologies, we are constructing a pilot manufacturing facility in Freiburg, Germany that is expected to be operational by the end of 2026. The facility will serve as the bridge between Fraunhofer’s research capabilities and TALON’s commercial manufacturing operations in Texas.
This allows us to validate process improvements, optimize manufacturing yields, evaluate next-generation equipment, test emerging materials, and de-risk future technologies before introducing them into large-scale production.
The advantages extend well beyond efficiency improvements.
Through TALON Technologies, we are actively supporting development of domestic supply chains for critical photovoltaic materials and consumables, including photovoltaic silver paste, screen-printing technologies, advanced process materials, and other strategic manufacturing inputs.
The platform also provides a pathway for evaluating future technologies such as advanced hydrogen-based processes, next-generation passivation approaches, metallization innovations, tandem architectures, and perovskite integration pathways long before they reach commercial deployment.
Importantly, this allows TALON to remain focused on operational excellence during factory ramp-up while simultaneously preparing for future generations of photovoltaic technology.
We often describe TALON Technologies Germany as the commercialization engine of the broader TALON ecosystem. It provides the mechanism to move ideas from research, to pilot validation, to commercial manufacturing while simultaneously strengthening domestic supply chains and supporting future technology leadership.
In our view, the future leaders of the solar industry will not simply be those who can manufacture at scale. They will be those who can consistently commercialize innovation and rapidly transition emerging technologies into production.
[Finlay]
While cell production is currently the key deliverable for the U.S. solar sector, this will likely move to wafer supply soon. How does TALON PV plan to guarantee domestic wafer supply if domestic supply channels remain tight with limited availability?
[Adam]
We do not intend to rely on a single wafer supplier, a single geography, or a single sourcing model.
TALON’s strategy combines domestic polysilicon partnerships, prospective domestic wafer producers, customer-supplied wafer programs, and international sourcing options where appropriate. That flexibility allows us to support production while the domestic wafer industry continues to scale.
Companies such as Hemlock and Corning have demonstrated that world-class upstream materials can be produced domestically. The next step is expanding wafer manufacturing capacity to support the rapidly growing U.S. cell manufacturing sector.
Our objective is to participate in that evolution while maintaining supply flexibility and reducing concentration risk.
In addition to prospective domestic wafer supply, TALON’s manufacturing model allows us to support customer-supplied wafer programs and strategic sourcing arrangements that provide multiple pathways for securing feedstock.
At the same time, we are actively supporting localization efforts across other portions of the photovoltaic value chain. These include initiatives involving photovoltaic silver paste, screen-printing technologies, process consumables, and other critical manufacturing inputs that historically have had limited North American production capacity.
We believe long-term competitiveness will come from creating a resilient domestic ecosystem rather than relying on any single supplier, geography, or technology pathway.
Our objective is not simply securing supply for TALON. Our objective is helping strengthen the broader American photovoltaic manufacturing ecosystem.
[Finlay]
Lastly, where do you see the U.S. manufacturing sector being in 2030 and how do you imagine TALON PV will fit in?
[Adam]
By 2030, I believe the United States will possess one of the most advanced photovoltaic manufacturing ecosystems in the world.
The industry will extend far beyond module assembly and include meaningful domestic capacity across polysilicon, wafers, cells, advanced materials, automation systems, and next-generation photovoltaic technologies.
A major driver of that growth will be continued electricity demand expansion from artificial intelligence infrastructure, advanced manufacturing, electrification, and broader industrial growth. Solar energy will play a central role in meeting that demand because of its scalability, speed of deployment, and cost competitiveness.
At TALON, we are actively building toward that future today.
Our manufacturing strategy includes our initial 4.8 GW Texas facility and a second 4.8 GW expansion around the end of the decade, creating a 9.6 GW advanced cell manufacturing platform in the United States.
Supporting those operations is TALON Technologies Germany, which serves as the commercialization engine connecting pilot-scale innovation with large-scale manufacturing.
By 2030, I expect TALON to be operating not only as a leading cell manufacturer, but as a catalyst for domestic photovoltaic supply-chain development.
We envision an ecosystem that includes advanced cell manufacturing, pilot-scale technology commercialization, workforce development, domestic materials production, and next-generation technology deployment.
Equally important is workforce development. Through TALON University, developed in collaboration with Rice University and supported by workforce-development initiatives in Texas, we are creating one of the nation’s leading training pipelines for photovoltaic and advanced manufacturing talent.
Our facilities are expected to support hundreds of highly skilled technical positions while providing pathways for high-school graduates, trade-school students, veterans, and working professionals to enter advanced manufacturing careers with significant upward mobility.
By 2030, success will not be measured solely by TALON’s production capacity. It will be measured by the strength of the domestic manufacturing ecosystem we helped create, the technologies we helped commercialize, and the role we played in establishing the United States as a global leader in advanced photovoltaic manufacturing.
[Finlay]
Thanks so much Adam. It’s fascinating to hear the approach. Just after the Inflation Reduction Act was introduced several years ago, I proposed the idea of a 100 GW cell foundry that acted as the epicentre of a cohesive and sustainable silicon-based manufacturing sector. Central to this was technology, process-flow and equipment tooling ownership – something essential to create the platform for U.S. solar to be world-leading.
This is probably the first time since then that I have heard this type of narrative being echoed by a company investing heavily in the U.S. solar manufacturing space. I am sure there are many others excited to learn and track the developments in Texas in the coming years.
TALON PV are one of the founding partners of the inaugural Solar Manufacturing USA 2026 event, taking place in Austin, Texas on 22-23 September 2026. Book your ticket to attend the event here, where you will be able to hear more about PV cell manufacturing from both me and Adam on the first day of the conference.
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