With approximately 50% of all conventional crystalline solar modules made in China, the concentrator photovoltaic (CPV) manufacturing sector in the country has been easily overshadowed in the past. However, that could be changing with the inauguration of the first commercial-grade CPV system on the Weihai campus of Harbin Institute of Technology (HIT), which was built and installed by China-based Suntrix. The project been listed as the ‘Golden Sun HCPV Demonstration Power Plant’ by the China General Certification Centre (CGC) through the Golden Sun Project.
Suntrix has developed both the module array and tracking system over the last three years and uses GaAs-based multijunction solar cells from an undisclosed U.S.-based manufacturer.
The system connected to the grid at the HIT campus has a peak power of 11KW (576 condensation), and claims to have the highest conversion rate in China as a grid-connected PV plant (DC-to-DC rate of 25%), according to the company.
Similar HCPV pilot plants by Suntrix are planned in Beijing, Neimenggu, Xinjiang, Jilin, Sichuan, and Guangdong.