Semprius Inc., a provider of concentrating photovoltaic solar modules, says it will officially open its first production facility on Sept. 26. in Henderson, N.C.
The company says it plans to hire more than 250 employees over the next several years.
The new facility uses a proprietary manufacturing process to produce solar modules with a 33.9% conversion efficiency, according to Semprius. Developed with support from the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Semprius' proprietary micro-transfer printing process enables the use of what the company says is the world's smallest solar cell.
In the last 15 months, Semprius raised almost $40 million in funding from equity investors, including ARCH Venture Partners, Illinois Ventures, Intersouth Partners, In-Q-Tel, Morgan Creek Capital Management and Siemens Venture Capital. In addition, Semprius was awarded North Carolina and Vance County incentives totaling almost $8 million.