Modules & Upstream Manufacturing

India’s Solar Power Developers Association said that the one-year safeguard duty extension has already driven up capital costs. Any additional tariff barriers would jeopardize the Indian government’s “100 GW by 2022” target, it claimed.

The solar cell calibration laboratory ISFH CalTeC has certified the efficiency of the cell, which was made with a standard M2 wafer.

SunPower and Maxeon Solar Technologies finalized their plan to split into two independent entities, while Austrian solar developer Energy BG 1 revealed plans to build a huge unsubsidized solar project in Bulgaria.

Chinese monocrystalline PV module manufacturer Longi has yet to join the race to produce solar panels with power outputs above 600 W. The decision is line with a clear strategy, a company spokesperson told pv magazine. Outstanding issues for these moduels, according to the manufacturer, include low cell manufacturing yield, system compatibility, concerns about module transport, and hotspot-related failure risks, as well as the need for mechanical loading tests.

Using an innovative high-speed video setup, scientists in Germany were able to observe the screen-printing process used in solar cell metallization, on a time scale of less than 50 milliseconds. Insights into the paste’s behavior and the mechanisms at work during screen printing will improve the process and the formulation of the silver paste it relies on.

Centrotec, a German energy efficiency specialist, has acquired Switzerland’s Pari Group, which holds an 80% stake in German PV module manufacturer Sonnenstromfabrik.

Plus, analyst WoodMac says a fall in the cost of power generation in Japan during the public health crisis will help drive renewables investment and the Indian government has relaxed borrowing rules for its financially crippled electric utilities.

In February, non-profit EU solar panel recycling body PV Cycle announced it had collected 5,000 tons of modules in France, of which 94.7% could be recycled. A reader asked us about the remaining 5.3% and here, PV Cycle’s communications manager, Bertrand Lempkowicz, responds.

Chinese polysilicon manufacturer Daqo has secured a long-term supply agreement with PV equipment provider and monocrystalline wafer manufacturer Wuxi Shangji Automation, Shanxi Coal International Energy Group has unveiled a plan to set up a 10 GW heterojunction solar cell production fab and Longi has held its wafer prices.

Taiwanese cell manufacturer Inventec Solar reportedly halted production this month and Ireland is preparing to remove rooftop solar panel restrictions, according to the Irish Independent.