Tesla and Panasonic to manufacture solar cells at New York factory

Tesla Motors and Panasonic have finalised an agreement this week to begin the manufacturing of photovoltaic (PV) cells and modules at the carmaker’s Buffalo, New York factory.

The high-efficiency PV cells and modules will be used to produce solar panels in the non-solar roof products. When production of the solar roof begins, Tesla will also incorporate Panasonic's cells into the many kinds of solar glass tile roofs that Tesla will be manufacturing. Production of the first PV modules will begin in summer 2017, and will ramp to 1 Gigawatt of module production by 2019.

“All of these solar products will work seamlessly with Tesla’s energy storage products, Powerwall and Powerpack,” said the company’s official statement.

“As Tesla and Panasonic begin production, Buffalo will continue to expand Tesla’s American manufacturing base and create thousands of new jobs in the coming years. Tesla reaffirms SolarCity’s commitment to create over 1,400 jobs in Buffalo—including more than 500 manufacturing jobs. Panasonic, with its technological and manufacturing expertise in PV production, will also work with Tesla on developing PV next generation technology at SolarCity’s facility in Fremont, CA,” it added.

As part of the agreement, Panasonic will cover required capital costs in Buffalo and Tesla is making a long-term purchase commitment from Panasonic. The collaboration extends the established relationship between Tesla and Panasonic, which includes the production of electric vehicle and grid storage battery cells at the Tesla Gigafactory.

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