India's solar photovoltaic waste is emerging as a major challenge, with estimates suggesting that it will rise to over 600 kilotonnes by 2030 and 19,000 kilotonnes by 2050, from about 100 kilotonnes in 2023.
India’s apex power sector planning body has called for the recycling of solar photovoltaic (PV) modules and their lifecycle management amid supply-chain issues and environmental concerns over their disposal.
Ghanshyam Prasad, the chairman of the Centre Electricity Authority (CEA), while speaking at a stakeholder consultation held in September, called for a greater focus on durability, recycling and lifecycle management of solar installations and stressed the importance of collaboration between academia and industry to accelerate the diffusion of technology.
Stakeholders highlighted the need for recycling frameworks and lifecycle standards in an effort to address the issue, which could become a major concern in the future, said a 13 October CEA report based on the consultation.
To be sure, the country's solar PV waste is emerging as a major challenge, with estimates suggesting that it will rise to over 600 kilotonnes by 2030 and 19,000 kilotonnes by 2050, from about 100 kilotonnes in 2023.
The report noted that, in addition to India’s dependency on imported wafers and polysilicon, gaps in indigenous equipment manufacturing, high capital costs for emerging production lines and a lack of recycling frameworks are also major concerns for the industry.
“Enforce mandatory PV recycling and lifecycle standards,” the report said.
Vaibhav Pareek, director, solar technology-focused company Surya Sparks Solutions Pvt. Ltd, was of the view that there is a need for policy support and recycling mandates in this segment.
India’s solar power generation capacity has grown in recent years, in the backdrop of the target of 500 gigawatts non-fossil capacity by 2030. India’s solar power capacity currently stands at 125GW and is expected to reach 280GW by the end of this decade.
Furthermore, the domestic module capacity has also grown, currently standing at 100GW, while cell manufacturing capacity is at 25GW.
Valuable waste
While the design life of solar modules is currently 25 years, some may experience an early end of life due to factors such as damage during transportation, improper handling and project operations, according to the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW).
A CEEW study published in 2024 recommended that the Indian solar industry prepare for these new responsibilities by arranging reverse logistics, storage, dismantling centres and recycling facilities.
“The industry should also explore innovative financing mechanisms and business models for solar waste management. Further, there should be a periodically updated database of the installed solar capacity (containing details such as module technology, manufacturer and commissioning date) to accurately map plausible waste generation centres and strategic deployment of waste management infrastructure,” it said.
Recycling is also important as it helps India retrieve some critical minerals. According to the CEEW, the waste from India’s installed solar capacity (as of March 2024) alone would increase to 340 kilotonnes by 2030, containing about 10 kilotonnes of silicon, 12-18 tonnes of silver and 16 tonnes of cadmium and tellurium, the majority of which are critical minerals for India.
The study found that the remaining 260 kilotonnes of waste will come from new capacity that will be deployed in this decade.