Modules & Upstream Manufacturing

A new generation of flexible, lightweight modules is entering the market. With back contact technology offering its own form of design flexibility and robustness, the new products could crack a hard-to-address market segment.

In a new weekly update for pv magazine, OPIS, a Dow Jones company, provides a quick look at the main price trends in the global PV industry.

TCL Zhonghuan reduced its wafer prices by between 16% and 24%, while its competitor Gokin Solar is raising funds to build additional ingot and wafer capacity. Meanwhile, TW Solar announced a 3.4 GW solar plant across 52 fishponds.

US-based Ecoflow has announced the commercialization of a balcony solar device with a portable power station for residential applications.

Australian energy major AGL is pushing ahead with plans to transform its Loy Yang power station site into a clean energy industrial hub in the Australian state of Victoria. It has signed a deal with Solar Recovery Corp. (SRC) to explore the feasibility of establishing a PV panel recycling facility at the site.

German chemicals producer Evonik claims that its wetting and defoaming solutions improve the speed and quality of wafer cutting, despite the industry’s shift toward harder, more brittle materials.

A Norwegian research team assessed the snow deposits on photovoltaic panels and the consequent energy losses via the PVsyst software and utilized the so-called Marion’s algorithm (MA) for evaluating the sliding coefficient. It found the coatings may effectively reduce energy losses caused by snow and ice but said the commercial feasibility of these materials should be further investigated.

Maxeon said it has achieved a 24.7% efficiency rating for a full-scale Maxeon 7 solar panel using its IBC technology. The US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) confirmed the result.

Tokuyama said the new factory should meet increasing demand for polysilicon. OCI already operates a polysilicon manufacturing facility in Malaysia.

Dutch solar manufacturer Solarge has unveiled two versions of its lightweight mono-PERC solar panels for rooftop applications. The module have power outputs between 470 W and 520 W and efficiencies ranging from 17.4% to 19.2%.