It would not be unreasonable to suggest that we all are seeking to regain momentum as the pandemic finally shows signs of abating. The same could be said for the country itself, with industry and retailers looking to revive activity.
Reasons to be Cheerful
Amid the ongoing challenges of sustainability and climate change, our solar energy industry has reason to be broadly optimistic about the months ahead.
Whatever the outcomes of last November’s COP26 climate summit, the event did succeed in keeping sustainable energy sources front of mind on a global scale.
The aim to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 remains the goal.
Public Support
There is more good news with solar PV scoring well in approval rating among the general public.
Trade association Solar Energy UK published a report last month showing the public supported the rollout of rooftop solar panels on homes and buildings in their local areas.
Some 89% of people said they would be happy to see more rooftop solar, or that they didn’t have a view on it with only 7% opposed.
New Technology
Other factors play into the positive outlook.
Despite the disruption and inflation produced by the global pandemic, solar PV prices are still dramatically lower than a decade ago.
Soaring prices of domestic electricity and gas are spurring unprecedented interest in solar PV, battery storage and Electric Vehicles.
The Smart Export Guarantee (SEG), where owners of PV systems are being paid to send their unused electricity to the national power grid is seeing attractive tariffs, some of which easily surpass the rate given by the Export Tariff which preceded it.
The most crucial aspect in all this is that the technology is improving markedly.
And at Westech, we’ve been in the solar PV business long enough to know how significant the improvements in technology can be to potential solar PV customers.
So we are delighted to reveal an exciting addition to our range of advanced solar PV panels with the introduction of the 400W panel.
The 400W is our most powerful rooftop panel yet, taking efficiency and design innovation to new levels alongside our existing compact 295W rooftop solar modules.
The Perlight 400W is a step-change. It has no metal cell busbar ribbons, the silver lines you will be familiar with on the front of every solar panel, which carry the electricity out of the cells are now gone.
By removing the cell busbar ribbons, we increase the cell surface area for absorbing energy.
Getting Greener
So no cell busbar ribbons not only looks better but save 0.3kg of metal per panel, which may not sound much until you consider that we produce thousands of panels per week.
We have also worked hard to remove unfriendly elements that are found in conventional solar panels, reducing lead content by 60% and removing fluorine completely.
Better Performance and Longevity
Our 400W panel outperforms conventional half-cell technology under shaded conditions and has a lower operating temperature. This reduces the risk of cell micro-cracks and hot-spots, thereby improving performance and prolonging the life of each panel.
That’s the reason why we have improved our standard warranty to 15 years and provided a market-leading 25-year linear output warranty.
And of course, we continue to make strides with our Integrated Roof Tile product with its stunning integrated look, which offers the ultimate in integrated solar roofing materials as well as more roof coverage and faster, easier installation.
At Westech, we are upbeat about 2022 and look forward to playing our part in supporting the growth of solar PV panel installations across the UK.
