User:WWB Too/First Solar improvement

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First Solar, Inc. (Nasdaq: FSLR) is a manufacturer of thin film photovoltaic (PV) modules, or solar panels, and a provider to PV power plants of supporting services that include finance, construction, maintenance and end-of-life panel recycling. First Solar uses cadmium telluride (CdTe) as a semiconductor to produce panels that are less expensive than those manufactured from crystalline silicon. In 2009, First Solar became the first solar panel manufacturing company to lower its manufacturing cost to $1 per watt (since reduced to 75 cents per watt).

The company was founded in 1990 by inventor Harold McMaster as Solar Cells, Inc. In 1999 it was purchased by True North Partners, LLC, who rebranded it as First Solar, Inc. The company went public in 2006, trading on the NASDAQ. Its current chief executive is Robert J. Gillette, who succeeded Mike Ahearn in September 2009. First Solar is based in Tempe, Arizona. As of 2010, First Solar was considered the second-largest maker of PV modules worldwide and ranked sixth in Fast Company’s list of the world's 50 most innovative companies. In 2011, it ranked first on Forbes’s list of America’s 25 fastest-growing technology companies.

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'''First Solar, Inc.''' ({{nasdaq|FSLR}}) is a manufacturer of thin film photovoltaic (PV) modules, or [[solar panels]], and a provider to PV power plants of supporting services that include finance, construction, maintenance and [[End-of-life (product)|end-of-life]] panel recycling. First Solar uses [[cadmium telluride]] (CdTe) as a semiconductor to produce panels that are less expensive than those manufactured from [[Polycrystalline silicon|crystalline silicon]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Are solar panel manufacturing component prices falling fast enough? |author=Matthew Lynley |url=http://venturebeat.com/2011/05/16/polysilicon-prices-fall-slow/ |work=GreenBeat |date=16 May 2011 |accessdate=26 July 2011}}</ref> In 2009, First Solar became the first solar panel manufacturing company to lower its manufacturing cost to $1 per watt<ref>{{cite news |title=Solar Panel Drops to $1 per Watt: Is this a Milestone or the Bottom for Silicon-Based Panels? |author=Alex Hutchinson |url=http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/energy/solar-wind/4306443 |work=Popular Mechanics |date=26 February 2009 |accessdate=26 July 2011}}</ref> (since reduced to 75 cents per watt).<ref>{{cite news |title=First Solar Falls On Surprise Q4 Sales Miss |author=Donna Howell |url=http://blogs.investors.com/click/index.php/home/60-tech/2309-first-solar-rises-ahead-of-earnings-amid-100-oil |work=Investor's Business Daily |date=24 February 2011 |accessdate=26 July 2011}}</ref>

The company was founded in 1990 by inventor [[Harold McMaster]] as Solar Cells, Inc. In 1999 it was purchased by True North Partners, LLC, who rebranded it as First Solar, Inc. The company went public in 2006, trading on the NASDAQ. Its current chief executive is Robert J. Gillette, who succeeded Mike Ahearn in September 2009. First Solar is based in [[Tempe, Arizona]]. As of 2010, First Solar was considered the second-largest maker of PV modules worldwide<ref>{{cite news |title=PVinsights announces worldwide 2010 top 10 ranking of PV module makers |url=http://pvinsights.com/Report/ReportPMM04A.php |work=PVinsights.com |date=2010 |accessdate=26 July 2011}}</ref> and ranked sixth in ''[[Fast Company]]''’s list of the world's 50 most innovative companies.<ref>{{cite news |title=Most Innovative Companies |author=Anya Kamenetz |url=http://www.fastcompany.com/mic/2010/profile/first-solar |work=Fast Company |date=17 February 2010 |accessdate=26 July 2011}}</ref> In 2011, it ranked first on Forbes’s list of America’s 25 fastest-growing technology companies.<ref>{{cite news |title=America's 25 Fastest-Growing Tech Companies |author=John J. Ray |url=http://www.forbes.com/2011/02/16/apple-google-data-technology-fast-tech.html |work=Forbes |date=16 February 2011 |accessdate=26 July 2011}}</ref>