A solar module's two key parameters are efficiency and power rating measured at Standard Test Conditions (STC), both are governed mainly by the cell level performance. When evaluating developments at the module level, the cell-to-module power ratio, often called CTM, comes into the picture.
For the end customer, what matters more than efficiency is the rated power. No matter how much progress there has been in the solar industry, and even with end customers increasingly looking at LCOE and $/kWh, peak power still remains the sales metric for solar modules for the large part.
As mentioned above, the output power of the PV module is a function of the number of cells embedded in the panel, which was also dictated by how PV panels were typically classified in the past, i.e. 60 and 72 cells (or eq.). Module makers, however, are increasingly experimenting with different configurations, and successfully so as evidenced by the commercialization of such products. Another development that is of even greater importance, one that is directly impacting module power, is the industry's move towards larger wafers. So regardless of configuration, wafer size and the number of cells, we have listed the top module products from each company in our report.
While the previous edition of our Advanced Solar Modules Report featured module products with rated power of greater than 500 W, our listing this year is split into 2 categories — 550 W to 600 W and above 600 W. What brings about this split is the fact that this list comprises modules based on both G12 and M10 formats. It is known that G12 based modules have higher power. While a few companies offer both G12 as well as M10 based products, some are stricter followers of one format.
Size matters: M10 typically supports a power range of 550 W to 590 W (Source: TaiyangNews).
And without this classification, those modules based on M10 hardly garner a spot as high power modules. This edition's most powerful commercially available module, also placed 2nd in our efficiency rating, is a G12 based TOPCon module from Jolywood with a rated power of up to 700 W. As can be expected, 9 of the 10 module products from 10 different suppliers in the 600 W category are based on the G12 format. JinkoSolar's Tiger Neo series is the sole representative of the M10 stream, built with 156 half-cells of M10 and featuring a power rating of 615 W. In fact, there are 9 products with 650+ W and all of them are based on G12 (see Basics Of Module Making).
Even among the 14 products listed within the power band of 550 W to 600 W, 4 are G12 based and all with a power rating of 600 W, and the remaining 10 are based on M10. The top of the M10 range in here is a 590 W PERC product from Talesun built with 156 half-cells, followed by JinkoSolar's TOPCon module with a rated power of 575 W using 144 cells. Jolywood is promoting a TOPCon module in the 182 mm format with a rated power of 565 W and 144 cells, which is also true for Talesun's module that just falls short by 5 W in rated power. There are also 5 modules with 550 W power and have identical important specs such as PERC cell technology, M10 format and 144 cells (see TaiyangNews Top Modules Monthly Listing).
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