JM Steel facility expands capacity for Nextracker solar projects

Solar tracker maker Nextracker and steel processor JM Steel announced the completion of an expansion of Nextracker-dedicated manufacturing lines at JM’s Leetsdale steel facility near Pittsburgh.

The companies said the expansion more than doubles the facility’s production capacity, achieving 4 gigawatts (GW) of capacity, and creating 60 new manufacturing jobs.

“The US solar market is continuing to demonstrate strong growth,” Dan Shugar, founder and CEO of Fremont, Calif.-based Nextracker, said in a joint statement with JENNMAR Holdings on Friday. “The US Energy Information Administration has forecasted solar to grow 26% on an annual compounded rate and be the number one source of energy in the US within a decade.”

JM Steel, a subsidiary of JENNMAR Holdings, has facilities in Pendergrass, Ga.; Sinton, Texas; Huger, S.C.; as well as Leetsdale, Pa.

The companies said the refurbished factory, reopened in 2022, “produces American-made, critical steel components to support rising demand for solar energy across Pennsylvania and the mid-Atlantic.”

For Nextracker, this expansion marks 20 new or expanded US manufacturing partner facilities since 2021, enabling it to provide over 25 GW of US solar tracker capacity each year, according to the statement.

Ethan Bernard

Ethan Bernard is managing editor for Steel Market Update. He previously worked for American Metal Market as a copy editor in the New York office for two years, starting in 2008. Later, he copy edited AMM’s monthly magazine on a freelance basis from 2015 until 2017. With experience in financial copywriting and textbook publishing, he holds a BA in Comparative Literature from UC Berkeley, and an MFA. in Creative Writing from New York University. He can be reached at ethan@steelmarketupdate.com or 724-759-7871.