JinkoSolar is preparing for something that will be huge in a few years – and better be looked into now by the module manufacturing industry. During the TaiyangNews Virtual Conference on Solar & Sustainability 2023, Roy Bi, Global Product Solution Manager at JinkoSolar announced that the Chinese company has a 12 MW pilot production line to recycle its solar modules. It takes 8 minutes/pcs module with a 95% recycling rate of silver, silicon, copper. Bi said the core technology of disassembling is chemical dissolution extraction and pyrolysis technology. It can recycle waste modules to the level of ‘basic element’. The key issue is volume today as very little module waste is available. However, as more modules retire in the years to come, Jinko considers expanding the line further. Jinko said it has shipped over 150 GW modules globally, more than any other company. It has committed to have all its operations powered by 100% renewables already in 2025 as part of its RE100 commitment.

Bi was speaking at TaiyangNews Virtual Conference on Solar & Sustainability, which took place on 30 March 2023. The Conference viewed solar & sustainability from different angles – corporate decarbonisation strategies, low carbon vertically integrated module manufacturing and CO2 certification, to sustainable product sourcing, module recycling, and repowering of PV plants. It included speakers from various segments of the solar sector, including project development, product procurement, recycling, processing materials, power plant repowering. A conference summary article can be read here.