Solarwatt starts new PV production in Germany, says Europe can compete with Asia

The German photovoltaic (PV) system manufacturer Solarwatt plans to launch a new production line in Dresden, and the company believes solar panel production in Europe can be competitive with Asia, especially for premium models, pv magazine reports. In an interview for the pv magazine podcast, managing director Detlef Neuhaus said the company planned to set up a new production line in the fourth quarter of 2020 to produce the new, larger M6 solar wafers. Neuhaus also told pv magazine that the company was starting to experience supply bottlenecks from the coronavirus outbreak, and expected those problems to become more noticeable in the coming months.

After a boom period for solar power module producers in Germany that ended around 2010, production moved almost entirely to China due to much lower costs. But recent studies have suggested that production in Europe could be viable again, and the German solar power industry is showing signs of a comeback, driven in part by the country’s new climate package.