Do we have a strategy to recycle the billions of solar panels that are being installed?
Rystad Energy’s research estimates that the recyclable materials from end-of-life (EOL) solar panels in 2022 are worth about $170 million globally. In size of market terms – that’s mice nuts.
They expect the market to grow to in excess of $2.7 billion by 2030 and reach $80 billion by 2050, but these are the typical growth projections companies create to justify their existence. They may or may not be accurate, more likely not.
Still, if accurate, $80 billion is nothing to sneeze at. However, the real question is how much will it cost to recapture the recyclable material? If its $80 billion plus a dollar that isn’t a business.
We’ll continue to monitor the recycling issue and provide updates in future posts