RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A solar panel company will create 65 jobs invest more than $36 million in the next three years to build a factory in Mecklenburg County.

Gov. Mike Easley said Monday that Sencera International is expanding ó a project made possible in part by a $62,000 One North Carolina Fund grant.

The Charlotte-based company develops and manufactures silicon thin-film solar modules that generate electricity.

Sencera chief executive officer Rusty Jewett said the company will be able to make solar panels that generate electricity at a cost competitive with power from natural gas, coal and nuclear power, but without the carbon emissions or waste disposal concerns.

The One North Carolina Fund provides financial assistance to attract business projects to stimulate the state’s economy.