Devens, MA has become the latest manufacturing casualty, thanks to an uncertain solar market and with the company in question, Evergreen Solar, making an attempt to cut costs in order to stay in the game. The truth is that they have had no choice but to set up shop in September in China in order to compete with Chinese based manufacturers.

With over 800 employees at this facility, the operations of this manufacturing plant will come to a complete halt before March 31, while also expecting a total charge of $ 355 million due to the closure. There is no doubt that this amount will affect the Q4 2010 and Q1 2011 results substantially.

Of course, it’s obvious that the company did not have a choice as competing globally while being a manufacturer in the United States makes it well and truly difficult to keep up with their competitors. However, the good news is that the company has decided to keep its high temperature filament plant open in Michigan.

According to the company’s CEO, El Hillow, China has received considerable government and financial support, and in also being able to keep manufacturing costs low, they have become price leaders of the solar market despite the continued pressure on selling prices throughout 2010.

And while the United States will continue to benefit from these low-cost solar units, yet this does not bode well for manufacturers to set up their plants in the United States at least for the short-term.