Chinese solar panel makers JinkoSolar, Longi and JA Solar have released a joint statement to announce they have reached a consensus on the standardization of PV modules produced with 182mm (M10) wafers.
The three manufacturers agreed that 54-cell panels will have to measure 1,722×1,134mm and have a mounting hole spacing of 1,400mm and that 72-cell products must have a size of 2,278×1,134mm and the same mounting hole spacing as 54-cell modules. Furthermore, they agreed that 78-cell panels will have to measure 2,465×1,134mm and have a mounting hole spacing ranging from 400mm to 1,500mm.
“Since the joint launch of the M10-type wafer standard by JA Solar, Jinko Solar and Longi Solar, in June 2020, the wafer size has been gaining widespread recognition and acceptance in the PV industry,” the statement read. “However, due to the differences in the technical roadmap, design concept and installation mode followed by different manufacturers, the standards of the same type of modules vary in their lengths, widths and mounting hole spacings despite being based on the same M10 wafer technology.”
The new parameters are aimed at standardizing component specifications to reduce manufacturing costs and simplify design and installation in the downstream business, the three companies stated. In mid-June, they jointly published a white paper intended to show what they believe are the advantages for developers of large scale PV projects of using photovoltaic modules manufactured with M10, 182mm wafers. In November 2020, the three manufacturers stated their combined production capacity of PV panels based on 182mm wafers would reach 54 GW in 2021.
The three manufacturers emphasized the increasing reliability risks associated with larger and more powerful products and reiterated the well-known saying “bigger is not always better,” heard in recent months from all those companies that decided not to bet on 210mm wafers and modules with a power output exceeding 600 W.