Manufacturing

The Indian solar manufacturer has started trial production of high-efficiency solar cells at its new Telangana site. The fab can produce 19.2%-efficient multi-crystalline cells using MCCE textured black silicon, as well as making 22.5%-efficient mono PERC products.

The BWRO unit, which has a treated water production capacity of around 11.80 ​L/h, was built with a pre-filtration module, a high-pressure DC pump, an RO module, and a post-treatment module. The PVT system was designed to meet the energy requirement of a high-pressure DC pump and a diaphragm-type circulation pump utilized to circulate soft water beneath the PV module for the active cooling of the panel itself.

Jinchen Machinery has landed module production equipment orders from leading Indian solar manufacturers. It has already installed 2 GW of production lines and plans to supply the balance within three months. The company will open an India office in Surat, Gujarat. 

Solar module prices have increased by about 15-20% over the last 4-5 months to around 22-23 cents/watt as of date. As PV modules comprise about 50-55% of the overall project cost, such an increase in the module price level, if sustained, may moderate the debt service coverage metrics for developers by about 12-14 basis points. 

Austria-headquartered Borealis has deployed Indian manufacturer Waaree Energies’ modules for the rooftop solar installation at its plant in Italy. The modules use Borealis’ encapsulation film.

The Indian solar panel manufacturer is setting up a 2 GW facility in Surat, increasing its total manufacturing capacity from 500 MW at present to 2.5 GW. The new facility will implement micro-gap module technology (MGMT), and produce high-efficiency mono-facial and bifacial modules with peak power output exceeding 500W and 600W, respectively.  

A €4.8 million EU-funded research project is aiming to develop a process that allows recovering all components of a photovoltaic module.

The Indian lead-acid battery major would form a new strategic business unit for lithium cells and battery packs, electric vehicle (EV) chargers, energy storage systems, and other related products and services as it looks to reposition itself as an energy and mobility player.

Often sidelined by nickel and cobalt when it comes to batteries, the metal manganese is finding proponents in science and industry – in particular, by those attempting to avoid supply and cost issues. Ian Morse reports on the role of manganese in battery cell production.

Modules represent 45 to 55% of the project capex. In a very competitive market like India, independent power producers have lower margins, and even a modest increase in module prices will put more pressure on them.