Japan-based solar solutions provider TOYO has outlined plans to establish a 1.5GW heterojunction (HJT) solar cell manufacturing facility in the Houston metropolitan area of Texas, US.
The project involves an estimated capital investment of $357m (Y57.18bn) and is expected to create around 400 direct full-time manufacturing jobs.
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The new manufacturing plant, which will be co-located with TOYO’s existing solar module site, will form an integrated hub for solar production.
Engineering, design and procurement for the HJT solar cell manufacturing facility are already under way. The company anticipates full project completion and the start of pilot output within 20 months.
By housing the new cell production line alongside its module operations, TOYO expects to achieve operational efficiencies. The company also expects the decision to help reduce logistics costs and shorten production cycles for US-made solar modules from raw wafer to finished product.
TOYO chairman and CEO Takahiko Onozuka said: “Expanding into domestic cell manufacturing is the natural next step in our commitment to creating an integrated onshore solar supply chain from polysilicon to panels.
“Co-locating 1.5GW of HJT cell capacity at our Houston module site significantly optimises our capital allocation and infrastructure spend.”
The facility will manufacture advanced HJT cells, which the company notes offer higher conversion efficiency and improved temperature characteristics compared to earlier solar technologies.
Project implementation will proceed in phases to ensure compliance with local regulations and permitting schedules.
TOYO’s funding strategy for the expansion involves a mix of internal cash flow, non-dilutive project financing, potential strategic partnerships and possible equity financing.
The company suggested that the facility’s domestic output could qualify under US Advanced Manufacturing Production Credits, offering up to $60m annually in potential production tax credits at full capacity.
It also anticipates wider economic effects, estimating that up to 1,200 additional jobs could be created across the regional supply chain.
TOYO chief strategy officer Rhone Resch said: “The new cell plant reflects TOYO’s long-term strategy to build a fully FEOC [foreign entity of concern]-compliant domestic manufacturing platform focused on serving the needs of the US utility-scale solar market.
“Looking ahead, we believe HJT is the optimal technology platform for integrating next-generation perovskite solar cells, which we expect will drive the next major advancement in solar conversion efficiency and support TOYO’s long-term technology road map.”
In March 2025, TOYO unveiled plans to begin building an additional 2GW of solar cell capacity at its new facility in Ethiopia. The company officially started production at the facility a month later.
