Holabird and Root

TEMPE, Ariz. — First Solar, a Tempe, Ariz.-based producer of thin film solar modules, is closing an alternative photovoltaic technology project rumored to employ the same technology as Solyndra, though the company is not disclosing the details of the research.

First Solar and Solyndra are among a group of Western panel makers undercut by cheaper competition from Chinese manufacturers such as Suntech Power Holdings Co., the world’s largest, according to Bloomberg Reports.