In its Q3 earnings call, First Solar stated that its sales backlog has grown to a monstruous 81.8 GW, with some of these orders now placed through into 2030. In contrast the company produced 4.3 GW in Q3 (of which 2.5 GW was series 6 and 700 MW was Series 7), and its production capacity will reach ‘only’ 25 GW in 2026, with five factories across the US and others in Malaysia and India. This long a queue for one company’s products reflect First Solar’s unique status as the only solar manufacturing giant to make Cadmium Telluride (CdTe) cells – the Chinese, among others, have tried and failed to make this technology cost-effective, with a couple of attempts still ongoing.…