University of Oxford spin-off Oxford PV has revealed a “world-first” commercial sale of its tandem solar panels that produce 20 percent more energy than standard silicon panels.
The 72-cell panels, comprised of Oxford PV’s proprietary perovskite-on-silicon solar cells, will be used in a utility-scale installation by an undisclosed US customer. The panels - which have a groundbreaking 24.5 percent module efficiency - reduce the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) and use land more efficiently because they generate more electricity from the same area.
David Ward, CEO of Oxford PV, said, “The commercialization of this technology is a breakthrough for the energy industry … With more electricity generation from the same area, perovskite technology is now helping utilities speed up this transition by offering more energy at a lower cost.” The company has been developing and working to commercialize its technology since 2014, so this is a big moment for both Oxford PV and its new and greatly improved solar technology.
Earlier this year, OGN reported that Oxford PV's perovskite-on-silicon tandem solar cell achieved an efficiency of 26.9 percent, a 1.9 percent improvement on the best current silicon modules that are a similar size. Of course, every extra percent of efficiency is important progress.
Oxford PV claims this to be the first commercial deployment of a perovskite tandem solar panel worldwide.