(Tiper Stock Exchange) – 3SUNthe company of Enel Green Power dedicated to production of innovative photovoltaic modules based in Cataniapresented in world preview during the fair Intersolar Europe 2023 in Munich three new photovoltaic modules, M40, M40 BOLD and B60, which will hit the market in 2024. These are products based on 3SUN CORE-H, the proven hetero-junction technology (HJT) entirely developed by 3SUN, therefore 100% European, which guarantees consolidated levels of efficiency, performance and reliability superior to products already available on the market, both for applications on buildings and for Utility-Scale use, in large systems.
“A new milestone in the history of 3SUN takes place with the presentation to the solar industry of the new photovoltaic modules that will be produced in our Gigafactory in Catania”, commented Aelian Russian, CEO of 3SUN. “Excellence, innovation and sustainability are our cornerstones for building latest generation photovoltaic panels, capable of competing with the big players on the market. From today, the photovoltaic industry can count on a new protagonist, to help achieve the decarbonisation objectives and build a more independent and secure Europe from an energy point of view”.
3SUN CORE-H it combines crystalline silicon with layers of amorphous silicon to maximize the ability to extract energy from incident light and make solar modules more efficient, resistant and competitive. As for i Utility-Scale modulesthis technology also differs in the symmetrical design of the cell which allows a 95% bifacial coefficient, almost 20% more than competitors, ensuring very high levels of efficiency and yield through the capture of sunlight from both sides of the photovoltaic cell. Not surprisingly, in 2020 3SUN managed to break the world efficiency record for commercial cells, reaching 24.63%.
Furthermore, the 3SUN modules, entirely produced in Italy, using neither lead nor fluorine, comply with the most stringent sustainability and circularity criteria and, by exploiting a production process at reduced temperatures, they allow us to offer 3SUN customers a 30-year performance guarantee and to maintain over 91.8% of performance after 30 years, a value significantly higher than the market standard.
The modules presented at Intersolar Europe 2023, the largest fair in Europe and one of the most important worldwide for the solar industry, have different characteristics to make them suitable for different types of use and needs, in the common sign of high efficiency, sustainability and innovation: SUN M40“basic” module dedicated to the roofs of residential and commercial/industrial buildings, with a power of 440-480 W and a design aimed at minimizing installation costs; 3SUN M40 BOLD, a high-end premium product, also intended for buildings and, in general, for distributed generation, to satisfy practical and aesthetic needs as much as possible. With a proven lifetime of up to 3 times longer than International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) standards, a power rating of 430-470W and an efficiency of up to 24.5%, it offers excellent performance and high energy yield both at lower latitudes, typically characterized by an excessively hot summer climate, both to the northern ones, characterized by adverse weather conditions, such as snow and wind, and low light; 3SUN B60, double-sided module intended for the Utility-Scale segment with power of 640-680 W and efficiency reaching 24%. Glass-to-glass configuration with a white grid between cells for better light reflection along with maximum energy yield in different locations and climate conditions, thanks to low temperature coefficients and low annual degradation, help optimize performance and LCOE (Levelized Cost of Energy). The 95% bifacial coefficient and the materials combined with anti-reflection coatings that minimize losses due to reflected light, make 3SUN B60 particularly suitable for large-scale systems installed mainly on the ground and on structures capable of following the sun throughout the day to maximize production.
These three new products, which will be available on the market starting from 2024, represent a first, important success of the research and innovation work of the 3SUN factory in Catania, which is also currently engaged, together with CEA/INES (national institute of solar energy in France), in the development of technology “Tandem” which combines heterojunction and perovskite to broaden the portion of the solar spectrum that can be converted into electricity. Tandem technology has recently beaten a new record reaching, in the research and development phase, a certified efficiency of 27.1% in a 9 cm² cell.
With the project called “TANGO”, iTaliAN Giga factOry, the Catania factory will increase from the current production capacity of 200 MW per year to around 3 GW per year, initially developing photovoltaic modules based on technology HJT extension. Subsequently the Tandem technology will be implemented which will allow the state of the art of photovoltaic cells to be significantly exceeded in terms of efficiency, reaching over 30% and at the same time improving the reliability of the panels. THE expansion works of the 3SUN Gigafactory began in April 2022 and is expected to be completed by 2024, through two phases that envisage respectively 400 MW operational starting from September 2023 and full operational capacity starting from July 2024. The production of photovoltaic modules in Tandem configuration is, however, expected starting from the end of 2025.