ENGIE North America will pilot a new precycling provision to incorporate solar panel and project component recycling into initial agreements at four projects. The precycling provision incorporates recycling into power purchase agreements and helps developers incorporate end-of-life material recycling at the start of the project’s lifecycle.
The innovative approach was developed in cooperation with SOLARCYCLE, a technology-based solar panel recycler, ENGIE North America said.
“This is especially relevant for energy buyers focused on project circularity and sustainability goals,” it said.
The agreements ensure that around one million panels from 375 megawatts of projects across the Midwest be recycled when they reach the end of their life, supporting full circularity of the projects, the company said.
SOLARCYCLE estimates that by doing so, the company will divert 48 million pounds of material from landfill and avoid some 33,000 tons of carbon emissions. Additionally, to the maximum degree possible, all construction waste and system components will be recycled.
"This collaboration between ENGIE and SOLARCYCLE means that the solar panel and system components on these projects will have full traceability to ensure circularity goals are met and ultimately returned into the domestic supply chain to help form the next generation of clean energy materials," ENGIE North America said. "The commitment is made possible by SOLARCYCLE’s advanced tracking capabilities that guarantee every panel on the projects is recycled and that the recovered material is returned to the supply chain."
The initial projects are expected to be completed over the next couple of years and will add to the more than 12 gigawatts of wind, solar and battery storage operated by ENGIE in North America
