The U.S. solar manufacturing industry employed about 32,000 workers in 2014—just a tiny portion of the more than 12 million domestic manufacturing jobs in the United States. China accounted for almost 70 percent of the world’s solar module manufacturing in 2013 and many manufacturers are expanding their activities to countries such as Malaysia, the Philippines, and Mexico. Ten firms control nearly half of the solar module production worldwide–six are in China, two in Japan, one in South Korea, and one in the United States. Overcapacity has caused the price of solar modules to decline by 65 to 70 percent since 2009 causing many U.S. firms to enter bankruptcy, close their U.S. operations, or reassess their business models.[1]
