Canadian Premium Sand (CPS), a glass manufacturer setting up in Canada to produce glass for solar panels, announced today that it intends to also start a pattern solar glass factory in the United States, capable of producing enough glass for 4 GW of solar panels annually.
Credit: Oregon Department of Transportation
CPS has been finalizing financing details for its glass factory in Selkirk, Manitoba, Canada. The site is north of Winnipeg, north of the Canadian border with Minnesota. The site will make “ultra high-clarity pattern solar glass” with high-purity, low-iron silica sand from Canadian quarries owned by CPS. The Manitoba site will use local hydroelectricity to eventually produce 6 GW of solar glass annually.
U.S. panel manufacturers Heliene and Qcells have signed glass purchasing agreements with CPS for their American-made panels. CPS stated that its U.S. customers have expressed a desire for domestic solar glass supply, and the company has been evaluating sites in the country to set up operations.
“The company is now preparing plans to re-purpose a former glass manufacturing facility in the U.S. to produce 4 GW per year of solar glass and is advancing discussions with a potential strategic glass manufacturing partner to jointly develop this site,” CPS said in a statement. No further details on the location of the facility have been released.
“Establishing 10-GW supply of both low-carbon and U.S. manufactured ultra clear pattern solar glass aligns CPS with the supply chain goals of our North American customers,” stated Glenn Leroux, president and CEO of CPS. “Alignment with a strategic glass manufacturing partner supports the execution of our North American strategy and vision.”
