The CalLab of the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems has confirmed that the global manufacturer of premium-quality products surpassed its own record by reaching a new height of 21.7 percent in its solar cell efficiency. The cells, based on crystalline p-type silicon wafers, were manufactured using industrial production processes, meaning that they can be quickly placed into mass production. SolarWorld will offer modules with 300-watt and more featuring this technology beginning this fall.

“SolarWorld has been the first company to rely on PERC in its cell production. With this new record, we expand our technological lead even further. We can offer customers more electricity production on the same area and at the highest quality and durability,” says Dr.-Ing. E. h. Frank Asbeck, CEO of SolarWorld AG. “And our researchers and developers already have an eye on the next efficiency improvements.”

800 megawatts of the company’s cell capacity have already been changed to PERC. Thus, SolarWorld AG possesses the largest production capacity worldwide to manufacture this high-performance technology, which the company is going to expand. As a result of new coating processes on cells' fronts and backs, the PERC technology achieves much higher efficiencies.