European Manufacturing

With calls for a revival in European PV manufacturing becoming more urgent, the Environmental, Social, and Governance credentials of its PV producers are being touted as a way in which manufacturing can be supported or even protected. The case for the ESG credentials of European manufacturing was advanced by multiple speakers at the 2023 SolarPower Summit this week in Brussels.

South Korea-based Qcells and a research group led by Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (HZB) have established a pilot manufacturing line for silicon-perovskite tandem cells in Thalheim, Germany. The project aims to speed up the technology’s mass manufacturing and market penetration.

The Japan-based manufacturing company has revealed plans to increase fivefold its production of heat pumps at its facility in Czechia by 2025.

Meyer Burger has announced that it has concluded a binding supply agreement with Norwegian Crystals for silicon wafers to use in heterojunction cell manufacturing. Hydro facilities primarily power the production of the wafers and their precursor materials in Norway. Combined with the shorter distance they’ll have to travel, this adds up to a low carbon footprint.

While Europe was previously a leader in the manufacturing of solar cells and modules, the plans falling into place this year already represent a scale never before seen on the continent. And they’ll need that scale if Europe is to meet expected demand for new solar over the coming decades, without relying heavily on imported products and components. Many of the technologies at the center of these plans are brand new as well; pv magazine looks at a few of the innovators planning to scale up alongside more mainstream players, and how these fit into plans for a fully fledged European PV supply chain.

In what has been described as a European first, Northvolt announces that the first lithium-ion battery has rolled off the production line at its Swedish manufacturing facility in Skellefteå.

As uptake of electric vehicles (EVs) increases, the EV battery market represents an opportunity for European players. McKinsey assesses the potential and looks at factors guiding the location of production capacity.

The EC said the two PV module makers have violated the undertaking for the minimum price of solar products imported from China.

The Bavarian-based solar power specialist has sold two robot layup machines to Turkey for the production of DESERT solar panels. The equipment ordered is capable of developing 240 MW of PV capacity.