Midsummer has temporarily halted its plans to build a thin-film solar cell factory in Flen, Sweden. In doing so, it is foregoing a European grant that had previously been awarded. The Swedish company has announced that it intends to expand its production capacity through a different model, opting instead to collaborate with major industrial partners. In doing so, it will primarily supply these partners with production machinery, raw materials and expertise.
This change of course brings an end to the specific Flen project that Midsummer presented in April 2024. The company had designated Flen as the site for a new factory with a maximum annual production capacity of 200 MW. The factory was intended for the European market and, according to the plans at the time, was due to start production in 2026. At full capacity, the site would have provided employment for around 200 people.
Funding changes the plans
The factory in Flen was to be partly funded by the EU Innovation Fund. Midsummer selected the site partly because of the available industrial space, the availability of electricity and the existing infrastructure. Flen’s location also played a part in the decision, particularly with regard to the transport of materials and finished products.
Funding for the project subsequently came under pressure. For instance, an application for financial support from the Swedish Industriklivet programme was rejected. At the same time, according to the company, new opportunities arose to develop production facilities outside Sweden in collaboration with major industrial players. The company states that these alternatives require significantly less equity capital than financing a new factory.
Midsummer has now announced that it has revised its long-term strategy for new factories. It has opted for a so-called ‘asset-light’ model, under which it chooses not to own and operate all production facilities itself. Instead, Midsummer is focusing on supplying machinery, raw materials and expertise to enable the establishment of local solar cell production across different continents. Midsummer expects this approach to generate revenue both from the sale of machinery and from operations once a factory is up and running.
Colombia to take on a greater role in production
The Swedish company is focusing its efforts on Colombia, amongst other markets. Midsummer had previously established the subsidiary Midsummer Colombia SAS there. In this way, the company aims to develop and serve the Colombian and wider Latin American markets. At the time of its establishment, the company highlighted interest from Peru, Ecuador, the Dominican Republic, Panama and Mexico, amongst others.
Midsummer sees great potential for its thin-film technology in Colombia. Among other things, the company highlights the combination of relatively high electricity prices, abundant sunshine, existing incentives for renewable energy and a large number of roofs that cannot support the weight of conventional solar panels. Midsummer’s solar panels weigh less than 3 kilograms per square metre. According to the company, this makes them suitable for homes, warehouses and other buildings with limited load-bearing capacity, amongst other applications.
Factory linked to Gripen order
In November 2025, Midsummer announced that it would supply all the production equipment for a factory in Colombia. This production facility is set to have an annual capacity of 100 to 200 MW and forms part of Saab’s industrial offset obligations in Colombia in connection with the sale of Gripen fighter aircraft.
Midsummer is supplying, amongst other things, its DUO machines for the production of thin-film solar cells to the factory. According to the company, each DUO machine has an annual production capacity of 5 MW. The factory will be built in phases. In May 2025, Midsummer received an initial order from Saab for production equipment with a capacity of 15 MW. The production capacity is then to be expanded to at least 100 MW, with a final target of 100 to 200 MW.
In the long term, Midsummer aims to develop the Colombian factory into a production hub for the Latin American market. Solar panels can be supplied from this site to customers in various countries across the continent.
