Solar panel manufacturers that fail to keep up with emerging technology trends will be under tremendous pressure in 2017, according to host of their peers at SPI 2016.
US-based developer of ‘direct gas to wafer’ technology Crystal Solar has been awarded a US$3 million cooperative agreement by the U.S. Department of Energy, SunShot Initiative.
German-based PV module manufacturer aleo Sunrise said it had started production of its ‘CELCO’ high-efficiency PERC (Passivated Emitter Rear Contact) solar cells at its production plant in Prenzlau, Germany.
‘Silicon Module Super League’ (SMSL) member Hanwha Q CELLS is planning to introduce its first ever monocrystalline modules, which will use its PERC (Passivated Emitter Rear Contact) cell technology. New and prototype products will be showcased at Solar Power International (SPI) in Las Vegas next week.
SolarWorld has launched a new era of modules for free-field and flat roof systems. The new ‘Sunmodule Bisun’ is a solar module active on both sides (bifacial) that converts light from all directions into electrical energy. This ensures up to 25 % more yield per installed kWp, depending on the surface on which it is installed. The modules are expected to be provided in 270Wp through 331Wp configurations. SolarWorld has also developed a new racking system for flat roofs that is optimized for the bifacial technology.
India-based PV module manufacturer Vikram Solar has revealed plans to expand capacity to 2GW by 2019, up from recently completed expansions that have taken nameplate module capacity to 500MW.
Heraeus Photovoltaics has launched a new PERC (Passivated Emitter Rear Contact) metallization paste. The SOL9631 front-side paste has a new and unique glass chemistry combined with a new organic vehicle system. Due to a denser microstructure it is tailored for ultra-fine line printability for screen printing.
Leading integrated monocrystalline PV manufacturer Xi'an LONGi Silicon Materials said it at reached 900MW of monocrystalline PERC (Passivated Emitter Rear Contact) solar cell production at the end of the first half of 2016.
PV and polysilicon manufacturing equipment specialist centrotherm photovoltaics has reported first half 2016 consolidated revenue of €61.9 million and an order intake for the period of €89.5 million.
As we conduct our extensive market research phase to define exactly what the industry needs to be discussing and presenting at PV CellTech 2017 in Penang, Malaysia on 14-15 March 2017, one of the top technologies that is certain to be included again is passivated emitter rear contact (PERC) cells.
