[PV Japan] Variety of CIGS PV Cells Displayed at Trade Show

Jul 2, 2010 16:42 Tetsuo Nozawa, Nikkei Electronics

Several prototypes and products of CIGS (CuIn-GaSe) photovoltaic (PV) cells that have large areas and high conversion efficiencies were exhibited in Yokohama City, Japan.

Those PV cells were showcased at PV Japan 2010, an exhibition on PV power systems that runs from June 30 to July 2, 2010.

Honda Soltec

Honda Soltec Co Ltd exhibited a CIGS PV cell module with a conversion efficiency of 13.4% under the title "For the Future."

The high conversion efficiency was realized not by drastically changing the manufacturing processes but by improving their accuracy, the company said. Also, the efficiency will be higher if the cell size is smaller, it said.

"We have yet to evaluate its yield rate and so forth," Honda Soltec said. "It takes time to shift from the current production lines. So, we have not yet decided a specific shipment schedule."

Solar Frontier

Solar Frontier KK, a subsidiary of Showa Shell Sekiyu KK, has already announced that it will realize a conversion efficiency of 13.3% in 2011 and 14.2% in 2012 at the aperture area of a panel (See related article).

Q-Cells

Q-Cells SE exhibited the "Q.Smart," a CIGS PV cell developed by its subsidiary, Solibro GmbH. As a product, the conversion efficiency of a panel made by using the cell is 12.0% at the maximum, which is the highest of all the CIGS PV cells that have already been shipped.

In June 2010, Q-Cells announced that its "Q.Smart UF" cell achieved a panel conversion efficiency of 13.0% (when the area of the panel is 0.75m²) and a conversion efficiency of 14.2% at the aperture area. The efficiencies were measured by Fraunhofer ISE of Germany.

MiaSole

MiaSole, a US-based solar energy company, developed a CIGS PV cell module with a conversion efficiency of 13.8%, which was certified by NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) of the US, though it was not exhibited this time. In 2010, the company started volume production of a CIGS PV cell with a module conversion efficiency of 10.5%.

Avancis GmbH & Co KG

Furthermore, Avancis GmbH & Co KG of Germany, which is a subsidiary of Saint-Gobain SA, a France-based major glass manufacturer, announced in June 2010 that it started to construct a factory where a CIGS PV cell with a conversion efficiency of more than 12% will be produced at an annual rate of 100MW. The factory will start full-scale operations in 2012. Its 30 x 30cm module submitted to NREL was confirmed to have a conversion efficiency of 15.1% (Press release).

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