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Massachusetts-based solar cell manufacturer Evergreen Solar, bellwether of the Bay State’s push for clean energy, announced on Wednesday its plans to move solar panel assembly to China.
The statement, appearing in the company’s filing of earnings for the
third quarter of 2009, arrives less than a year after Evergreen opened
the doors to its much-lauded plant in Devens, the recipient of $58.6
million in state aid. Of the 577 full-time and 230 contract workers at
the Devens location, half are involved in assembling the panels, though
the company declined to comment on how many would lose their jobs as a
result of the move.
From the Boston Globe:
In a statement [Wednesday] night, Evergreen said it “remains committed to the investment it has made in Massachusetts. Marlborough is the home of our company headquarters and R&D facilities. Devens will continue to be our US manufacturing location for wafer and cell production, and our staffing plans will remain well within the employment commitment we made to the state when we first announced our plans to build the Devens facility.’’
The company’s intentions to shave costs by shifting production to the city of Wuhan and contracting with Chinese manufacturer Jiawei Solar have been out in the open since April, though the recent announcement confirms the industry’s (and presumably Governor Deval Patrick’s) worst fears. When it inked its $58.6 million deal with the Patrick administration earlier this year, Evergreen had promised to repay the state grants, loan, land, tax incentives and other forms of aid with 350 jobs, a promise that has been more than met. But financial difficulties have posed setbacks to the company, thanks to overseas competition and declined solar panel prices. It had also recently requested $5 million from the state to cover equipment purchases, though Evergreen has yet to see the money.
Not surprisingly, the Patrick administration is not pleased.
“Governor Patrick and I are disappointed by Evergreen Solar’s decision to begin moving the final panel assembly component of their business to China,’’ said Ian Bowles, secretary of the state’s Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. “In just two short years, Evergreen Solar has become a significant employer in Massachusetts, and we will work hard to make sure the company protects the maximum number of jobs in our state.’’
For a company that lost a troubling $167 million over the past nine months, the move to Wuhan—where Evergreen expects to be able to produce solar panels at $1.50/watt—is a decision grounded purely in economics. But at a time when the distribution of federal or state money is closely scrutinized and the creation of green jobs is one the government’s hopeful cures for the ailing economy, the decision has the potential to produce a ripple effect of discontent.
