The head-spinning global race to higher power solar panels continues this week, with JinkoSolar unveiling its new, super efficient 610W Tiger Pro TR module at the SNEC PV Power Expo in Shanghai over the weekend.
The China-based company launched the new generation of 610W Tiger Pro High-efficiency monocrystalline TR solar modules alongside its Building Integrated Photovoltaics product series (BIPV) at the expo.
In a statement released ahead of SNEC 2020, Jinko said the Tiger Pro HOT2.0 high-efficiency monocrystalline series, with its maximum output of 610W and conversion efficiency of 22.3%, was “setting once again new-standards for the industry and positioning JinkoSolar far ahead from its competitors.”
The company said the success of Tiger Pro 610W came down to the introduction of new technologies, including “HOT tunneling layer passivated contact” and “advanced metallisation,” which had taken cell efficiency to 24.79% – “a world record for the efficiency of large area N-Type monocrystalline silicon solar cells,” Jinko said.
“At the same time, the use of 78 cell design and of TR technology, which helps reduce significantly the cell gap, as well as lower the electricity cost and improve the system compatibility, represents another milestone for the PV industry in its quest for grid parity,” the company said.
The new product launch follows closely on the May 2020 unveiling of Jinko’s 580W module, also from the Tiger Pro range, which was slated to begin commercial production in Q3 2020.
And it comes just a few weeks after fellow China giant Trina Solar threw down the gauntlet to the industry with the global launch of its own 600W module.
The 600W Vertex module was unveiled in mid-July at an industrial chain summit of the 600W+ Photovoltaic Open Innovation Ecological Alliance in China.
As One Step reported at the time, the Alliance is a collection of 39 firms – including Huawei, JA Solar, Risen Energy, Nextracker and Sungrow – that has pledged to work together to build products, systems and standards for next-generation PV technology, starting with 600W+ ultra-high power modules.
The idea is to “synergise” the main resources of the industrial value chain – from silicon to wafers, cells, modules, trackers, inverters, materials, and equipment manufacturers – and integrate core processes of research and development, manufacturing and other applications.
“PV is becoming one of the strongest driving forces for energy transformation,” a statement on behalf of the Alliance said.
“To bring more value to customers and promote sustainable development of the PV industry, open innovation is critical.”
In comments on Friday last week, JinkoSolar chief technology officer Dr Jin Hao said cutting costs and increasing efficiency was the goal the industry had always been striving for.
“JinkoSolar has always been committed to providing global customers with high-efficiency, top quality, and extremely reliable solar modules,” he said.
“We will increase our investment in R&D to ensure constant innovation in our technology, improve our products’ performance,
and ensure the highest system compatibility.
“This will allow us to fulfill our commitment to offer the best service to our global customers and to allow the application of our solar modules in a variety of scenarios, further empowering the solar PV industry and achieving grid parity.”
Sophie is editor of One Step Off The Grid and deputy editor of its sister site, Renew Economy. Sophie has been writing about clean energy for more than a decade.
