Reimagining Value from Waste Solar Panels
Is there a better alternative for obsolete solar panels that still have many years of operating service in them other than throwing them in landfill? In this project we developed a solution to this very problem.
The International Renewable Energy Agency forecasts that solar panel waste could be up to 8 million tonnes in 2030 rising to 78 million tonnes in 2050 with many of these panels still having significant remaining service life.
The Challenge
School Infrastructure NSW was expecting to decommission approximately 30,000 PV modules in the next few years and was facing the challenge of how to manage this solar waste stream in a manner consistent with the Department’s values and the principle of circular economics. Recycling options were limited and expensive so they engaged the Blue Tribe team to develop a solution.
Our Approach
We employed our vision and discovery approach via a series of workshops to identifying the key problems and barriers that would need to be overcome to develop a solution.
Numerous ideas were developed and the second life solar concept was born and is now moving towards building a demonstration system in Dubbo NSW.
Our Solution
The International Renewable Energy Agency notes that the service life of PV panels is 30 years. 99.97% of Australia’s PV capacity has been installed since 2010 meaning that ~100% of PV waste streams that are being disposed of into landfill are less than ten years old.
These decommissioned solar panels are generally treated as waste and sent to landfill even though many are perfectly serviceable with significant remaining service life. They are not reused because of the lack of clarity around the permissibility of reuse and the absence of innovative business models and inspection methods.
The Second-Life Solar project is establishing a secondary marketplace that extends the service life of solar panels (that is, making use of them for longer) by offering an alternative to waste disposal into landfill that also provides clean energy and a source of income. Communities will be empowered to establish and run their own solar garden, thereby improving social equity and boosting the transition to a net zero emissions economy.
