Solar Cells

India’s National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has approved Waaree’s acquisition of Indosolar, in a deal that will expand its planned PV cell production capacity from 4 GW to 5.4 GW, while complementing its upcoming foray into module manufacturing.

Polysilicon manufacturer Wacker has launched a feasibility study for its expansion plans in Norway. It said its production capacity in the village of Holla could increase by 50% by 2025.

The cell stability was improved with the addition of ferrocene at the perovskite/spiro-OMeTAD interface. It was able to retain around 70% of its initial efficiency after 1,250 hours.

Scientists in Japan have developed new processes for CIGS solar cell manufacturing, entirely eliminating the use of cadmium and replacing a waste-intensive wet chemical stage. With a thin film deposited on a flexible steel substrate, the group achieved 16.7% efficiency, which it says is a record for a cell of this type produced using scalable fabrication processes.

Scientists in the UK and Japan used the latest imaging techniques to observe the inner workings of a perovskite solar cell at the scale of a few nanometers. Their findings suggest that a single defect is responsible for both limiting initial performance and causing degradation of the cell. By altering chemical compositions and process parameters, the appearance of this defect can be quickly reduced, and the group is confident that its finding could quickly be applied in large-scale processing as well.

PV developers in Czechia can apply for solar rebates until Aug. 31. Solar-plus-storage projects will also be able to participate.

JA Solar said that the smallest solar panel in its new n-type product line has a power output of 435 W and a power conversion efficiency of 22.3%. The largest module in the series has an efficiency rating of 22.4% and 625 W of nominal power. Their temperature coefficient is -0.30% per degree Celsius.

Automaker Geely has commissioned a new polysilicon factory in northern China, while ET Solar has opened a new 5 GW wafer factory in Vietnam. Poly giant GCL Technology, meanwhile, has confirmed that its board might issue common stock for a Chinese listing.

Hanersun claims that its new TOPCon solar modules are suitable for residential and commercial rooftops, as well as small-scale, ground-mounted PV plants. They have a temperature coefficient of 0.31%.

The PV-IPCEI event hosted by the European Solar Manufacturing Council (ESMC) took place on May 20 in a narrow wood-paneled room of Brussels’ Art Deco Residence Palace.