The large panel manufacturer that it has produced enough solar cells to create a gigawatt of power since it began commercial production in 2002 and hopes to double its current capacity soon.

"It took the Company more than six years to produce its first 500 megawatts (MW) and eight months to produce its second, creating today's 1GW total," reads the announcement. "By the end of this year, the Company...will have the capacity to produce more than 1GW per year -- the equivalent of an average-sized nuclear power plant."

How much does 1GW mean in real terms? A First Solar recruitment video brags of a plant in Nevada that produces 10MW, "enough to power 64,000 homes." By that logic, 1GW should be able to power several large cities.

But there are caveats when it comes to this form of electricity generation. Solar panels only work in daylight, and only at full capacity on clear days. That Nevada plant would be unlikely to hit 10MW of output very often if it were located in British Columbia. A 1GW nuclear power plant, by comparison, can keep producing power around the clock and in any weather.

Nor are these panels all in one place, or one time zone. They have been manufactured and installed in different locations all around the world, and cannot all be producing electricity simultaneously.