Financial

It was reported that SolaEon Technology, a Chinese manufacturer of next-gen solar cells with a focus on perovskite-based PV, recently signed an investment contract with the local government of Xuzhou City, China, as one of fifty-six contracts signed at the 27th Xuzhou Trade and Investment Fair.

SolaEon plans to invest about 1.2 billion yuan (almost USD$170 million) in the perovskite solar cell production base in the High-Tech Zone. Upon completion of the production lines with an annual capacity of 200MW and 1GW of perovskite cells, the production value is expected to reach 2 billion yuan (approximately USD$283 million) per year.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) Small Innovative Projects in Solar (SIPS) 2024 funding program provides $5.4 million for seedling R&D projects that focus on innovative and novel ideas in photovoltaics (PV) and concentrating solar-thermal power (CSP) and are riskier than research ideas based on established technologies.

The 16 selected projects were recently announced, among them were 5 perovskite-related projects.

The Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) has been selected to lead the United States Space Force University Consortium/Space Strategic Technology Institute 3 (SSTI) research regarding advanced space power and propulsion, which is backed by $9.9 million in funding.

The research is in partnership with the Air Force Research Laboratory and will enable game-changing space power and propulsion technology that will transition to the U.S. Department of Defense. The University of Michigan is also a lead institution for this research, which will include advancements in solar technology, thruster technology, and novel power approaches. As a center leader for the SSTI, RIT will work with other university partners to develop lower-cost, sustainable solar cells that can be used for power systems.

An EU-funded Laperitivo project was launched earlier this month, focused on manufacturing large-area stable perovskite solar modules. Laperitivo stands for “large-area perovskite solar module manufacturing with high efficiency, long-term stability, and low environmental impact.” The project aims to achieve 22% efficiency for 900 cm² opaque panels and 20% for semi-transparent modules with more than 95% bifaciality.

The team will focus, among other things, on solving scalability challenges, to promote large-scale mass production with minimized losses. The abstract of the project’s EU funding paper also states that: “Indoor and outdoor field tests will be performed to monitor module reliability. Safety, circularity, and sustainability will be assessed to demonstrate products with minimized environmental impact.”

Perovskia Solar, a spin-off from the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa), has secured USD$2.4 million in funding from a global coalition of angels and early-stage funds, and successfully obtained 10+ Internet-of-Things (IoT) industry leaders as clients. The startup has introduced the first ready-to-adopt perovskite solar cells on the market for edge devices and is scaling up its Swiss manufacturing capacity.

Perovskia Solar is a Swiss cleantech startup that develops highly efficient, custom-designed solar cells for IoT and consumer electronic devices. These cells harness ambient light to power the next generation of self-sustaining devices, drastically reducing reliance on traditional batteries and minimizing waste. The company's vision is to integrate a solar cell into every device, enabling clients to launch breakthrough products with superior end-user experiences while tackling global environmental challenges. 

The Washington State Department of Commerce (DOC) announced a $37 million investment into 46 clean energy projects throughout the state.

The programs will be funded by the Washington Climate Commitment Act (and additional state funding), with $14 million going towards the “Research, Development and Demonstration” program, which awards “projects fund multiple new and developing technologies, ranging from low-head turbines to create hydropower, to several different carbon capture technologies, to low-carbon concrete products.”

Reports suggest that a number of renewable-related projects have recently been signed in Shanghai, China, including a 1GW perovskite module factory.

The perovskite solar module factory will be initiated by Wuxi UtmoLight Technology (UtmoLight), a China-based technology development company working towards perovskite commercialization, with a total investment of 1.5 billion yuan ( around USD$212,221,000), The new facility will be located in Heze City, Shandong Province.

The Michigan Translational Research and Commercialization Advanced Transportation Innovation Hub has awarded over $1.5 million to 15 projects driving commercial potential in transportation technologies. 

Among the recipients are Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering Xiwen Gong, whose research addresses the challenges in the large-scale production of perovskite solar cells. Gong’s project aims to create low-cost, large-scale perovskite solar cells with high efficiency and stability needed for potential applications in the electric and hybrid vehicle and industry.

The EU-funded project PEARL aims to achieve improvements in solar energy technology by incorporating carbon electrodes into perovskite solar cell architectures. This enhancement is expected to lead to reduced material costs, increased device stability, simplified fabrication processes, and significantly lower emissions. The project started on 1st October 2023 and will run 36 months. PEARL receives funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation program.

The project is coordinated by Teknologian Tutkimuskeskus VTT Oy, and includes partners like the Nederlandse Organisatie voor Toegepast Natuurwetenschappelijk Onderzoek TNO, Helmholtz-Zentrum für Materialien und Energie GmbH, Università degli Studi di Roma Tor Vergata, ICIQ, Dycotec Materials LTD, Fraunhofer Institute for Electron Beam and Plasma Technology FEP, Fachhochschule Nordwestschweiz, Saule Spółka Akcyjna and Eni SPA.

GCL Technology, one of China’s largest solar panel materials producers, will reportedly invest 700 million yuan (almost USD$98 million) to transition to a more lucrative next-generation technology, as the industry grapples with losses and oversupply.

The Hong Kong-listed company aims to complete the first phase of a 500 megawatt (MW) plant in Kunshan by the middle of next year, for solar modules that combine cells stacked with perovskite and crystalline silicon, according to a statement by Fan Bin, chairman of GCL Perovskite. “The value of the [nascent] perovskite technology lies in the ample room for uplifting its energy conversion efficiency,” he said. “That is why manufacturers are willing to invest in its development.” The future cost of production using the perovskite-silicon technology could be lower than the crystalline silicon technology, he added.