The Federal Government is partnering with leading Australian universities to support new research projects addressing end-of-life issues for solar PV panels.
A total of $15.14 million has been awarded through the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) to support research teams at six Australian universities. This is the first time ARENA has funded projects to address end-of-life solar PV issues.
According to Energy and Emissions Reduction Minister Angus Taylor, Australia’s solar PV sector does not currently have a sustainable solution for managing used solar panels at the end of their life.
With around 12 gigawatts of small-scale solar PV systems and over 5.7 gigawatts of large-scale solar now installed in Australia, Taylor said developing end-of-life options is critical to minimising future waste problems.
“Managing used solar panels at the end of their life is an emerging issue and why the government is backing Australian researchers to find ways to improve the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of solar PV technologies, while also reducing waste,” he said.
The research aims to address the emerging issue by focussing on reducing the cost of sustainably managing panels at the end of their life, either through better upfront design, increasing the value of recovered materials or by repurposing recycled components.
The funding is expected to help create more than 50 full-time equivalent jobs across 16 research and development projects over the next two years.
Assistant Waste Reduction and Environmental Management Minister Trevor Evans said the volume of photovoltaic system equipment reaching its end-of-life is set to become one of Australia’s largest electronic waste streams in coming years.
“That’s why the Federal Government is tackling this emerging problem using the best technology available, as part of our broader plan to transform Australia’s recycling and waste sectors,” he said.
Funding has been awarded to research teams at the Australian National University, Macquarie University, University of Melbourne, University of New South Wales, University of Sydney and Swinburne University.
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