The third PV CellTech event takes place in Penang, Malaysia in just two weeks from now, on 13-14 March 2018. The schedule of speakers and companies lined up this year is set to be both fascinating to hear, and essential to dissect, when looking at exactly how the PV industry will evolve beyond the 100GW of solar cells produced in 2017.
Inline solar cell measurement equipment specialist Aurora Solar Technologies (AST) is expecting 2018 to be a record year for new orders, as major PV manufacturers continue to migrate and ramp high-efficiency solar cells such as monocrystalline PERC (Passivated Emitter Rear Cell) and bifacial cell technologies.
Consumption of polysilicon used by the solar industry will decline to below 4g/W during 2018, hitting 3.92g/W at the end of Q4’18, according to a new value-chain model developed by the in-house market research team at PV Tech.
‘Silicon Module Super League’ (SMSL) member Trina Solar has set a new record 25.04% conversion efficiency for an N-type monocrystalline IBC (Interdigitated Back Contact) solar cell at its State Key Laboratory (SKL) of PV Science and Technology (PVST) that was independently certified by Japan Electric Safety and Environmental Technology Laboratory (JET).
PV capital expenditure (capex) in 2018, covering investments into ingot, wafer, cell and module capacity, will grow by almost 25% compared to 2017, passing through the US$10 billion mark, returning to levels last seen back in 2010 and 2011 when investments in turn-key thin-film fabs were a key contributor.
‘Silicon Module Super League’ (SMSL) member JA Solar was the sole supplier of PV modules to a 35MW PV plant completed in December 2017, in the Negev Desert using its P-type mono PERC (Passivated Emitter Rear Cell) modules.
A research project to identify solar cell conversion losses and provide commercial solutions, which was initiated in December 2017 by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA), has attracted ‘Silicon Module Super League (SMSL) leader JinkoSolar.
Specialist PV manufacturing equipment supplier Amtech Systems has continued to benefit from a major solar orders placed with the company in 2017 that are continuing conversion to revenue in its fiscal first quarter of 2018.
The Institute for Solar Energy Research Hamelin (ISFH) and the Leibniz Universität Hannover have produced lab cells using polysilicon on oxide – POLO – junctions, in an interdigitated pattern on the rear side and a specially treated p-type monocrystalline wafer to record a cell conversion efficiency of 26.1%.
Russia-based integrated PV manufacturer Hevel Group, which has switched production from amorphous silicon thin-film technology to silicon heterojunction (HJ) has said it has been successful in ramping to its 160MW nameplate capacity and achieving cell conversion efficiencies of 22.8%.
