German glass giant Schott AG is defying the current economic uncertainty & is on schedule to open its new solar manufacturing plant at Mesa del Sol south of Albuquerque, New Mexico early 2009, creating 350 jobs in the process, company officials said. The 23,225 sq/m of building space being erected at the site include two adjacent manufacturing plants to make equipment for two different types of devices used to generate solar power. Schott has already hired about 100 workers, most of them locals, who have been training to the company's existing manufacturing operations in Europe, said Zane Rakes, head of Schott's Albuquerque operations. When the plants are operational in spring 2009, Schott expects to employ 350 people here, Mr. Rakes said. Schott, already a major player in the EU solar industry, wanted a plant in the US to serve the growing sun belt solar energy market. he said. "Albuquerque is the finest large-scale manufacturing center that Schott's going to have in the United States", Mr. Rakes said in an interview. The plant's products will take advantage of a growing set of tax and other government incentives at the state and federal level intended to encourage the development of renewable energy sources in the United States. Solar energy currently makes up just 1% of US electricity supply but it is one of the fastest growing sources, increasing 35% in the last year, according to the federal government's Energy Information Agency.
