SolarCycle Launches Georgia Solar Panel Recycling Facility in January 2026
In a significant move for the U.S. renewable energy sector, SolarCycle has officially begun operations at its new, state-of-the-art solar panel recycling facility in Cedartown, Georgia. The launch marks a critical step forward in creating a circular economy for the rapidly growing solar industry.
Advanced Technology and High-Volume Capacity for Solar panel recycling
The sprawling 255,000-square-foot facility is engineered to tackle the challenge of end-of-life solar panels head-on. It features SolarCycle’s proprietary next-generation recycling technology, which significantly enhances efficiency and material recovery. The system doubles the throughput of previous technologies, achieving an impressive 100% landfill diversion for the panels it processes.
Currently processing thousands of panels per week, the Cedartown plant is set to scale its operations dramatically. By the end of 2026, SolarCycle aims to process up to 1 million panels annually. At full capacity, the facility will be able to handle the equivalent of 5 gigawatts (GW) of solar panels each year.
The core of the operation is its remarkable recovery rate. The process successfully extracts 96% of the value from decommissioned panels, reclaiming essential materials including silver, copper, aluminum, glass, and other critical minerals that can be returned to the domestic supply chain. Initially, the facility is optimized for monofacial panels, with solutions for bifacial panels in the final stages of development.
An Integrated Campus for a Circular Supply Chain and Solar panel recycling
This recycling plant is the cornerstone of a larger, integrated campus. Adjacent to the recycling facility, SolarCycle is planning to build a solar glass manufacturing plant. This co-location will create a closed-loop system where glass recovered from old panels can be used to produce new solar glass on-site.
Construction on the glass plant is scheduled to break ground in mid-2026, with the first deliveries of produced glass expected in 2028. Demonstrating strong market confidence, over 80% of the glass plant’s planned 5 GW capacity has already been secured through customer commitments.
Supporting America’s Clean Energy Growth through Solar panel recycling
The opening of the Georgia facility is timely. The U.S. Energy Information Administration forecasts that the nation will add approximately 70 GW of new solar capacity between 2026 and 2027. As this deployment accelerates, so does the need for a sustainable, domestic solution for managing aging solar infrastructure.
Headquartered in Mesa, Arizona, SolarCycle also operates facilities in Odessa, Texas. The company has established key recycling agreements with industry leaders such as Sol Systems and RWE Clean Energy, positioning itself as a pivotal player in managing the lifecycle of solar assets across the country. The Cedartown facility not only strengthens the U.S. solar supply chain but also ensures that the clean energy transition is a truly sustainable one.
