Yingli Green Energy Holding Co., the world’s second largest solar panel manufacturer, said it will build its first overseas factory in Thailand as it seeks to grow outside China.

The manufacturer formed a joint venture with a unit of Thailand’s Demeter Corp. to construct the 300-megawatt solar panel plant in Rayong, about 140 kilometers (90 miles) southeast of Bangkok, Yingli said Tuesday in a statement on its website. The joint venture will invest 689 million Thai Baht ($19 million) in the plant.

Yingli is piling into a factory building boom as rivals including Trina Solar Ltd., Hanwha Q Cells Co. and JA Solar Holdings Co. plan to expand manufacturing capacity by almost 7 gigawatts this year. Once the world’s biggest solar manufacturer, Yingli has slipped behind Trina and hasn’t reported a quarterly profit since 2011. The new plant will help the Baoding, China-based company expand beyond domestic markets.