On Wednesday, the German Engineering Federation (VDMA) presented an updated version of the International Technology Roadmap for Photovoltaic (ITRPV). The roadmap is intended to help manufacturers and players in the industry identify trends and stimulate discussions for necessary improvements, writes the VDMA. The report covers the entire value chain for crystalline silicon photovoltaics, and relates to data from the year 2016.
Unlike the previous editions, the new roadmap contains information on the technology of individual production techniques and processes, according to VDMA. The maturity of each technology is classified into four stages: 1. The technology is currently used. 2. The technology is known but is not yet used. 3. An interim solution is known, but still too expensive. 4. No industrial solution is known.
The roadmap estimates the global production capacity for crystalline PV modules to be more than 90 GW per year at the end of 2016. The market share of crystalline photovoltaics was more than 90% last year, while the thin film share was less than 10%. The roadmap predicts that these shares will hardly change over the coming years.
The complete roadmap, with detailed results including parameters such as learning curve, cost reduction and development forecasts in the different value-added stages can be downloaded free of charge on the website www.itrpv.net.
40 leading photovoltaic manufacturers, as well as research institutes and consulting companies have been involved in the report. The roadmap was initiated in 2009 by the industry association of international semiconductor manufacturers (SEMI). Since the seventh edition, which was published in 2016, VDMA has been responsible for its publication.
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