Featured in The quality issue – 04-2018

From cost to tech-driven advances

Quality across the PV chain: With around 100 GW installed in 2017 (according to PV Market Alliance’s preliminary numbers), the global PV industry has once again beaten even the most optimistic of forecasts. However, this rosy picture hides some specific developments that highlight how the road to maturity could be long and at times chaotic, and why support for the industry must continue, both in Europe and beyond, writes Gaëtan Masson, director of the Becquerel Institute.

By

pv magazine

18 Jun 2018

One vital driver of industrial development and quality assurance in solar will be technology, from materials to cell technology, modules to balance of systems, and right across the installation landscape, writes Masson.

The current market status for solar, at 100 GW, is a temporary milestone. It was achieved mainly thanks to rapid development in China and, to a certain extent, the growth in some emerging markets. It also created, again, a severe imbalance, with more than half of the global PV market concentrated in a single country. A …

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