TORONTO (CP) -- Four Toronto entrepreneurs have announced plans to build a solar module manufacturing plant in Kingston, Ont. -- a proposal expected to create 1,200 "green collar" jobs in the area.
Everbrite Solar says the $500-million plant would be capable of producing 150 megawatts of solar panels each year -- enough to meet the annual power needs of 20,000 homes.
Karl Scherre, Everbrite's president and CEO, predicts the first panels will be on the market at the end of next year, assuming all the funding is obtained.
Scherre says the plan is drawing "strong interest" from investors in North America and Europe.
He says the fact that the plant will be "fully robotic eliminates any labour advantage that Asia may have."
Everbrite's four founders -- Scherre, Carl Piercy, Dave Hardy, and Keith Hunt -- all come from the Toronto business community.