Key takeaways:
Projected PV waste in Europe is expected to exceed current recycling capacity within this decade
Most recycled materials are not yet suitable for reuse in solar manufacturing due to quality limitations
Regulatory gaps and uneven infrastructure distribution remain key barriers to scaling PV recycling in the EU
PV module recycling infrastructure is picking up pace around the world. However, the capacity currently online is still insufficient to accommodate the modules that are reaching or are expected to reach their end-of-life (EoL) in the near future.
A recent analysis by a team at the University of Murcia, Spain, assesses the current and projected PV waste generated through 2050 and how regulatory frameworks support or create bottlenecks for establishing high-value recycling and circular material flows.
With several EU member states rapidly deploying PV installations, often outpacing targets, and continuing to expand, EoL modules are also expected to increase. It is projected that by 2030, the annual waste in Europe will be close to 200,000 tonnes and exceed 2 million tonnes by 2050. This is attributed to both repowering and systems reaching the end of their operational lives. The current PV recycling capacity in the EU is approximately 170,000 tonnes per year. This clearly shows that there is already a gap between recycling infrastructure and the waste being generated, highlighting an urgent need to scale up capacity to accommodate future volumes.
Regarding the technicalities of recycling, further advancements are needed to make the process cost-effective and improve the quality of recycled materials. The materials extracted after recycling are mainly used in non-PV applications, as the quality of materials such as glass, aluminum, and others often does not meet solar-grade standards. Repurposing is another option, which gives modules a second life and helps reduce the carbon footprint. However, trade-offs such as performance degradation, safety, and certification of reused modules need to be addressed.
PV modules can be recycled using chemical, mechanical, and thermal treatments. Companies employ these routes individually or in combination to extract the materials with optimized efficiency and quality, as seen in approaches used by Solar Materials, a European PV recycling startup. France largely uses pyrolysis and chemical treatments to recover up to 99% of materials, including silver and silicon. Germany and Spain currently rely on mechanical methods to recover up to 90% of materials, mostly glass and aluminum. Italy uses thermal and chemical treatments to recover about 85% of the module’s overall weight.
As part of the study, the team from the University of Murcia collected responses from producer responsibility organizations (PROs) and recyclers in 11 EU member states and 2 non-EU countries. The top 4 countries with the largest recycling capacities are Germany, with about 90,000 tonnes, and France, with 20,000 tonnes per year. The total recycling capacity of the top 5 EU countries is about 147,575 tonnes per year, which is 87% of the total capacity across all EU nations.
It was found that the key concerns in scaling the recycling capacities in the EU are economic viability, regulatory fragmentation, and logistics challenges. There are also companies addressing some of these challenges. For example, Korea’s Won Kwang S&T’s SolreBorn helps with on-site delamination for repowering projects. However, the issue is not only logistical but also linked to fragmented regulations and inconsistent policy implementation across member states. The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) directive does not include PV-specific waste, and there is an absence of recyclability criteria in Ecodesign, along with a lack of incentives for recovering high-purity materials.
Some of the recommendations include improving access to precise data on annual PV waste flow and its geographic distribution. The concentration of recycling infrastructure leads to higher transportation costs and regional service gaps. A more distributed network of dedicated PV recycling facilities across member states is required to avoid stockpiling, illegal exports, and low-value treatment in non-specialized facilities. Revising the WEEE directive to include PV-specific requirements, along with standardized collection and reporting procedures, would support the development of a more robust PV recycling system in the EU.
A detailed outline on the current status, bottlenecks, and opportunities in PV recycling in Europe is available in the research paper titled ‘Assessing Photovoltaic Recycling Capacities and Policy Gaps in the EU’.