On April 11, the Crystalline Silicon Photovoltaic Module Dimensions Seminar was held in Beijing under the guidance of the China Photovoltaic Industry Association (CPIA) and sponsored by the Standardization Technology Committee of CPIA and the China Electronics Standardization Institute.
A total of 15 leading photovoltaic enterprises, including Longi Solar, Jinko Solar, JA Solar, Trina Solar, Canadian Solar, Risen Energy, Tongwei Solar, as well as industry chain related enterprises such as Flat Glass and Xinyi Solar participated in this seminar.
This seminar was organized under the call of the industry, aiming to find out the current situation and development trend of the size of rectangular silicon wafers and corresponding modules, explore the core value of the corresponding module products of rectangular silicon wafers and the possibility of size standardization, with a view to jointly promoting the size standardization of crystalline silicon photovoltaic modules, so as to guide the collaborative development of the industry upstream and downstream.
In 2022, China’s photovoltaic industry achieved new heights, setting historic records in terms of manufacturing output value, product output, total exports, and new installed capacity.
However, with the progress of photovoltaic technology and the cost pressure of grid connection, photovoltaic module technology has developed towards large-sized and high-power, and various specifications of products have emerged one after another, leading to the problem of inconsistent module sizes.
In particular, in 2023, some photovoltaic manufacturing companies launched “rectangular silicon wafers”, which once again posed new challenges to the already unified module sizes and raised concerns about the industry entering an internal competition caused by size chaos and corresponding cost increases.
Jiang Hua, Deputy Secretary General of CPIA, stated in his speech that “The inconsistency of module sizes will lead to an increase in the manufacturing costs of raw materials in the entire industry chain, as well as an increase in the design costs and supply risks of terminal power plants.”
Specifically, for upstream enterprises, inconsistency of module sizes will bring production capacity switching and incompatibility losses to manufacturers such as silicon wafers, cells, and photovoltaic glass, as well as increased inventory costs. For downstream enterprises, in order to adapt to the electrical and load performance parameters of modules of different sizes, tracker and inverter manufacturers need to match and develop different products. For the client, separate design is required for different modules to increase design costs; when the supplier cannot meet the demand, it will be unable to switch to other products.
The leading enterprises attending the meeting have a broad consensus on the issue and raised higher expectations for the work.
Previously, industry associations and photovoltaic enterprises have made their own efforts to standardize the size of modules for many times.
In the past two years, the proportion of square silicon wafers with specifications of 182mm and 210mm has exceeded 75%, and has become the mainstream of the industry. Under the joint promotion of standardization institutions and manufacturing enterprises, the appearance dimensions of modules corresponding to 182mm and 210mm square silicon wafers are gradually unified. In December 2022, CPIA issued T/CPIA0003-2022 Technical Requirements for Overall Dimensions and Mounting Holes of Ground Crystalline Silicon Photovoltaic Modules, which standardized the overall dimensions of modules and promoted the coordinated development of the industrial chain.
At this seminar, participating companies stated that although conventional static mechanical load testing can be performed on oversized modules, the actual outdoor operating conditions are complex and variable, and relying solely on the conventional testing requirements that have been used for many years can no longer ensure the long-term reliability of oversized modules.
In order to ensure the asset safety of terminal power station holders, it is necessary for the industry to update testing methods and measurement standards as soon as possible, maintain customer value, and promote high-quality development of the photovoltaic industry.
In addition, the standardization of module dimensions should also be extensively and deeply researched, listening to the voices of end users and upstream and downstream stakeholders in the supply chain, so to improve the stability of photovoltaic power systems, and reduce industry resource waste.
Furthermore, changes in module dimensions are not industry innovations. Industry innovation should return to improving cell efficiency and power generation, always adhering to the first principle, deepening innovation to lead the direction of technological progress, meeting the differentiated needs of customers, and promoting sustainable development of the photovoltaic industry.
