The rapid growth of photovoltaic (PV) technology has led to significant advancements in renewable energy production. However, with this growth comes the challenge of managing the end-of-life of PV panels and ensuring the circularity of materials. Current PV modules on the market are not designed for circularity (meaning easy to disassemble, repair, refurbish, and recycle). They cannot be "re-opened" and the only way for recycling is through destructive processes such as shredding. The irreversible design severely limits repair/ refurbish potentials, as well as the recovery of valuable materials. Despite the advancements in technological research, there is currently a clear lack of business incentives for manufacturers to implement design-for-circularity. This session aims to explore strategies and innovations in PV circularity, focusing on PV module design for circularity and the state-of-art PV recycling solutions.
10:00 am - 10:10 amDrivers for a Circular PV Sector
Mr. Raffaele Rossi, Head of Market intelligence, SolarPower Europe
10:10 am - 10:20 amState of the Art of PV recycling
Mr. Jan Clyncke, Managing Director, PV CYCLE
10:20 am - 10:30 amTechnology and Innovation gaps for a circular PV value chain
Mr. David Moser, ETIP PV Vice-Chair and Realibaility and Circularity WG leader, Eurac Research
10:30 am - 10:40 amCircularity by Design in PV Products
Dr Laura Miranda Perez, Head of Sustainability & Government Affairs, Oxford PV
10:45 am - 11:30 amTowards a Circular PV Industry (Panel Discussion)
Ms. Hanna Dittmar, Project Officer, SolarPower Europe