German inverter maker SMA Solar Technology AG officially opened its Gigawatt Factory in Niestetal, near Kassel, on 17 September 2026. The plant, which will produce equipment for utility-scale solar, storage and hybrid projects, has enough space for more than 60 GW of output a year at full capacity, according to the company’s calculations.
Central inverters, batteries and energy management under one roof
According to the company, the plant produces next-generation central inverters for large-scale applications, battery storage solutions and energy management devices. The product range covers photovoltaic (PV) plants as well as storage, hybrid, hydrogen and data centre applications.
The Gigawatt Factory was built on a 46,000 m² site with 20,500 m² of indoor space. The total investment was put at around EUR 80 million, of which around EUR 50 million relates to payments under a 20-year lease and around EUR 30 million to a one-off investment in production-specific infrastructure and equipment. SMA says it has shifted its focus to utility-scale energy infrastructure over the past two years, reorganised its product and value-added mix, and developed the factory’s production layout accordingly.
Bigger projects, more need for scale
SMA Chief Financial Officer Dr Kaveh Rouhi stressed that reliable energy infrastructure has become a prerequisite for economic growth and industrial competitiveness, and said the new plant strengthens the company’s commitment to manufacturing and technology investment in Europe. Florian Bechtold, Executive Vice President for Large Scale and Project Solutions, said customers are planning larger and more complex projects than ever and that the factory provides the scale and flexibility needed to meet this growth.
The opening was held under the theme of turning industrial value creation into reliable energy infrastructure. A panel on supply chain resilience, technological sovereignty and energy security featured Dr Herbert Diess, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Infineon Technologies, SolarPower Europe CEO Walburga Hemetsberger, RWE Generation CEO Nikolaus Valerius and retired Lieutenant General Ben Hodges.
According to company information, the total capacity of PV inverters SMA has sold worldwide since 2006 is around 156 GW.
Sources
- SMA Solar Technology AG press release, “SMA opens Gigawatt Factory and strengthens industrial foundation for the energy infrastructure of the future”, 17.09.2026 – sma.de
Image: SMA Solar Technology AG
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