Modules & Upstream Manufacturing

The IEA Photovoltaic Power Systems Programme’s (IEA-PVPS) latest report on solar panel recycling offers a comprehensive review of all existing technologies in this market segment, from pure mechanical recycling to innovative techniques such as as light pulse treatment, water-jet cleaning, pyrolysis, and chemical treatments.

Though it already hosts several of the world’s largest PV installations, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region’s solar industry is still young, with limited local infrastructure and expertise. Project developers are learning quickly that building PV in harsh desert environments requires a careful eye on quality. New testing laboratories are looking to meet demand.

The Chinese government is launching an investigation to determine whether the European Union is blocking Chinese solar investments.

A new paper finds that combining photovoltaics with crop farming can result in revenue gains over the life of a PV system at a diverse range of locations in the United Kingdom. Researcher Aritra Ghosh tells pv magazine that the benefits of agrivoltaics are “multifaceted.”

Three companies, including US-based startup Sol Clarity, are experimenting with electrodynamic screen systems to clean solar panels using minimal electricity and no water.

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.

Scientists in the United States have fabricated an all-perovskite tandem solar cell that reportedly shows reduced interfacial energy loss in the cell’s top device. It was built with a hole transport layer based on a compound known as P3CT that was doped with lead iodide.

Researchers in Spain have created a novel PV forecasting method that uses only direct radiation as a parameter. They found it to be “comparable, if not superior” to four established forecasting techniques. The method could help homeowners with PV systems decide when to use electricity-intensive appliances and cleaning systems.

The PV modules on India’s Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM) comply with the Bureau of Indian Standards and meet the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy’s (MNRE) module efficiency criteria for utility-scale, rooftop, solar pump, and solar lighting applications.

Longi says it expects a net loss of CNY 4.8 billion ($660.2 million) for the first half of 2024, while Tongwei is bracing for a CNY 3 billion loss. Aiko Solar and TCL Zhonghuan, meanwhile, are predicting losses of CNY 2.9 billion and CNY 1.4 billion, respectively.