Addressing Hotspots in the Product Environmental Footprint of CdTe Photovoltaics

A pilot study within the European Commission's “Single Market for Green Products” initiative has been developing standardized methods for measuring, verifying, and communicating a product's environmental performance. These methods provide the basis for identifying and then addressing hotspots in the product environmental footprint of photovoltaics (PV). In the case of CdTe PV, hotspots related to electricity usage in manufacturing, glass content in PV modules, and metal content in modules and balance of systems can be addressed through technology innovation. Transitioning to a larger, lighter (per unit area), more efficient, and still recyclable version of current thin film modules is expected to reduce the product environmental footprint of CdTe PV to a factor of 3.5-4 below that of an average PV module as proposed in the European Commission pilot study.