First Solar, Inc.

Good afternoon and welcome to First Solar's second quarter 2026 earnings conference call. This call is being webcast live on the investors section of First Solar's website at investor.firstsolar.com. All participants are in a listen-only mode. And please note that today's call is being recorded. I would now like to turn the conference over to your host, Byron Jeffers, Head of Investor Relations.

Good afternoon and thank you for joining First Solar's second quarter 2026 earnings call. With me today are Mark Widmar, Chief Executive Officer, and Alex Bradley, Chief Financial Officer. Mark will begin with second quarter highlights, followed by Alex, and then we'll open the line for questions. Today's discussion contains forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ materially due to risks and uncertainties as described in our earnings press release and other SEC filings and the earnings material available at investor.fursolar.com. We undertake no obligation to update these statements due to new information or future events. We will also reference certain non-GAAP financial measures. Reconciliations to the most directly comparable GAAP measures are in our earnings press release and presentation. This non-GAAP financial information is not intended to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for financial information presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP. With that, I will turn it over to Mark.

Thank you and good afternoon. Beginning on slide four, we delivered both Record second quarter in first half sales volume and improved financial performance relative to the prior year. During the quarter, we generated over $1 billion in net sales, expanded gross margin to approximately 57%, and delivered strong adjusted EBITDA performance. We also surpassed an important milestone for First Solar, exceeding 100 gigawatts of cumulative module sales globally. We view this as a reflection of the Trust Customers have placed in First Solar over the more than two and a half decades and the durability of our technology and manufacturing platform. We entered the quarter with approximately 45.1 gigawatts of contract backlog. We delivered with deliveries extending through the end of the decade, demonstrating the demand for our demonstrated technology platform, domestic manufacturing footprint, and delivery certainty. Turning to manufacturing, our U.S. facilities continue to operate at high utilization rates during the quarter. In South Carolina, the first phase of the finishing facility remains on track to begin production in the second half of 2026 with equipment installations progressing as expected. For the second phase, we now expect completion in mid-2027. While the revised timing reflects a number of factors associated with optimizing the facility's launch, it also enables the earlier incorporation of CURE technology. We are pleased with the performance of CURE with both high-volume manufacturing at our Perrysburg facility and performance data from field deployments across multiple climates exceeding expectations. We believe incorporating the technology closer to the onset of the facility's commercial launch will simplify execution, accelerate value realization, and enhance customer value and the facility's long-term financial performance. Once completed, the South Carolina facility is expected to provide up to 3.5 gigawatts of finishing capacity for modules initiated at our international manufacturing sites giving us greater flexibility to optimize our supply chain flexibility while also optimizing freight, tariff, domestic content, and section 45X economics. With respect to our international manufacturing fleet, production planning and utilization levels in Malaysia and Vietnam continue to be influenced by U.S. market demand drivers and economics. including the pending section 232 polysilicon and derivative investigation and tariffs. We expect greater policy clarity will help inform the long-term operating profile for the approximately 1.8 gigawatts of fully finished international capacity that remains available. After accounting for capacity being used to produce semi-finished product destined for our new South Carolina finishing line. A note on manufacturing optimization and allocation. Approximately 41 gigawatts of our 45 gigawatt backlog includes some form of domestic content requirement. These requirements vary significantly and range from requiring exclusive supply from U.S. fully integrated factories to blending U.S. made supply with both fully integrated domestic factories as well as product from our upcoming South Carolina finishing line to a domestic content points requirement, which is factory agnostic, allowing blending of product from across our global fleet. We therefore continually balance and refine our module supply and demand allocation across the fleet to meet customer contractual obligations, optimize factory throughput, and optimize gross margin. This typically means that Over a period of time, we will seek to maximize production and sales firstly from our fully integrated U.S. factories, secondly from our South Carolina finishing line, and thirdly from our international facilities. As it relates to perovskites, we continue to advance our development program for this potentially significant technology platform. Our previously announced development line continues to progress to process improved efficiency and reliability attributes on smaller form factor modules, while our series six form factor pilot line remains on schedule and is expected to reach operational readiness in the first half of 2027. Our continued progress has given us confidence as we continue to invest substantial capital in our efforts to realize the commercialization process. Earlier today, we published our latest corporate responsibility report reinforcing our conviction that how and where solar technology is made matters. The report details how we create enduring value by developing, sourcing, manufacturing, and recycling solar modules domestically, supporting jobs and communities, strengthening industrial capacity, and help ensure the benefits are realized locally. It also highlights our continued focus on responsible manufacturing, supply chain transparency, workforce development, and resource efficiency. The report reflects the effectiveness of a business model where corporate responsibility isn't a construct but the default. Before turning the call over to Alex, I want to briefly address the market and policy environment and how it is informing our commercial approach. The underlying drivers for utility-scale solar remain intact, including low growth, data center development, electrification, aging generation assets, and the need for affordable, scalable new capacity. The policy landscape continues to evolve, particularly as it relates to pending outcome for the Section 232 polysilicon and derivatives investigation, as well as final FEAC regulations. In this environment, we continue to prioritize pricing, contract quality, appropriate risk allocation, and long-term value over short-term bookings volume. Relative to the beginning of the year, we are seeing increased customer engagement, and as policy clarity improves, we believe First Solar remains well-positioned to capitalize on these opportunities. With that, I'll now turn the call over to Alex to discuss our bookings, financial results, and outlook.