\u201cBefore joining the PV industry I worked in other industries, and I saw how the Chinese and other Asian countries invested in what they considered \u2018strategic segments\u2019,\u201d said Lecacheux, speaking about how expertise in the global solar sector had shifted from Europe to other markets, such as China and the US. He said this had left Europe in a vulnerable position as renewable power in general, and solar in particular, has become a more integral part of the global energy mix.<\/p>\n
A report from think tank Ember, published in January of this year<\/a>, found that by the end of 2024, electricity generation from solar PV had outpaced that of coal in Europe; an encouraging figure for the energy transition more broadly, but one that highlights the vulnerable nature of the European power sector.<\/p>\n In the wake of the energy crisis, triggered in part Europe\u2019s reliance on Russian gas supplies, the case for a resilient, domestically-produced energy supply chain has become increasingly clear. The challenge is how to get there. <\/p>\n \u2018Innovation and IP are absolutely key\u2019<\/p>\n \u201cWe realised, through crises, we were very dependent on foreign countries for energy, but also on any kind of manufactured goods,\u201d continued Lecacheux. \u201cIt was putting Europe at risk due to changes in geopolitical decisions [and] supply chain disruption. We need to reindustrialise the industries that we left a few years ago, and redevelop the know-how that we have lost.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201c[China] developed these segments, became very competitive and transferred these technologies from the US and Europe, and then became the master of these technologies,\u201d he added, suggesting that there is a path for Europe to establish a more resilient solar supply chain in this environment.<\/p>\n \u201cFor what we do, and for what Betrand does, innovation and IP [are] absolutely key,\u201d agreed David Ward, CEO of British perovskite-tandem module manufacturer Oxford PV. Ward suggested that if Europe builds technologies with more niche applications and tailored uses, the continent will have products that are differentiated from, and able to compete with, those already available in China and the US. His comments in full can be watched in the video below.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u201cYou cannot make a sane argument for doing traditional, old-school PV in Europe,\u201d Ward continued. \u201cYou make an argument for doing innovative, high-end silicon PV; you make an argument for doing tandem and standing on the shoulders of [traditional silicon PV] to do the next generation.\u201d<\/p>\n Ward\u2019s comments are unsurprising, considering Oxford PV\u2019s commitment to perovskites, but the fact that the company has shipped modules on a commercial scale<\/a> and signed a licensing agreement with industry giant Trinasolar<\/a> could indicate an appetite for innovative, European PV products. <\/p>\n Moreover, attendees across this year\u2019s Intersolar suggested that market consolidation would follow in the wake of financial challenges endured by many industry leaders<\/a>, highlighting the importance of building up a strong IP.<\/p>\n As Ward says, both from a financial and operations perspective, \u201cyou still have to prove your way through it\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s why having the facility that we have on the small-scale in Germany has been vital to prove the intellectual property, to prove that you have a product [and] to prove that high efficiency is important; customers want to buy a product and that there\u2019s a business case for doing it,\u201d said Ward.<\/p>\n Responding to chaos in the US<\/p>\n Making a strong business case and focusing on high demand is vital, particularly considering the huge concentration of the global supply chain in China. Ward noted that the transition from the small-scale production of niche technologies to \u201cbuilding gigascale in Europe\u201d is a considerable jump.<\/p>\n These challenges have been reflected in the fate of Holosolis itself; at last year\u2019s Intersolar event, then-CEO Jan Jacob Boom-Wichers told PV Tech Premium that \u201cwe have everything\u201d for a large-scale solar manufacturing sector in Europe<\/a>. One year on, this has not yet materialised. <\/p>\n Lecacheux, who took over as CEO in March of this year, picked up on this uncertainty, both for his own company and Europe more broadly, with the continent literally and metaphorically caught between the US and China.<\/p>\n \u201cAt least in PV, before Trump increased the tariffs, there was already a barrier for Chinese modules in the US, so we had already seen the transfer back from the US,\u201d said Lecacheux. \u201cIt shows that if we are too dependent on foreign countries, a decision like that might completely disrupt the entire supply chain, and we\u2019ll be at risk to get the products we need to get the modules we need to further develop the PV industry in Europe.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe have to reindustrialise almost everything,\u201d said Ga\u00ebtan Masson, CEO of the Becquerel Institute, who called for a complete resurrection of the European manufacturing sector to protect Europe from this uncertainty. \u201cLet\u2019s take a simple PV module; it\u2019s not just about PV module assembly, it\u2019s about glass, aluminium, backsheets [and] screws. We have to restart from zero.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u201cThe US is out of the world now,\u201d Masson said, whose comments are available in full above. \u201cIf you want to do business with the US \u2013 importing or exporting equipment, buying PV components now \u2013 they\u2019re out of the world. You cannot make a business case for that because you have no idea what [is] the price you will get or the price you will pay.<\/p>\n \u201cForget about the US,\u201d he continued, a striking comment considering the US\u2019 recent growth in both solar deployment and manufacturing; figures from Wood Mackenzie and the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) show that the US added a record of 50GW of new operating capacity in 2024<\/a>.<\/p>\n More consistency from European policymakers<\/p>\n If the US is a lost cause when it comes to finding potential allies for the European solar sector, the panellists suggested that the relatively supportive nature of the European policy environment gives some cause for optimism.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA) was published, the clean industrial deal was released [and] we see now in different countries \u2013 France, Italy, Austria \u2013 some criteria in favour of made-in-Europe products,\u201d said Lecacheux, suggesting that European policy is moving towards support for domestic manufacturing projects.<\/p>\n The NZIA was first launched at last year\u2019s Intersolar event<\/a>, and has since been updated to include even more support for solar PV manufacturing<\/a>; as Lecacheux says: \u201cThis is good news, and I would say the business case, compared to one year ago, is more solid now.\u201d<\/p>\n Masson compared this to a more hostile, scattergun approach to renewables manufacturing legislation in the US, and said the unified EU measures could encourage European investors to prioritise using European-made products. He described this thought process as: \u201c\u2018We don\u2019t want to be resilient, we want made-in-Europe\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u201cGetting the permits and authorisation was [not] long and painful, it was not really the case,\u201d addedLecacheux, whose comments on Holosolis\u2019 efforts to scale up its manufacturing work are available above. This work has been met with challenges, but are ones that, according to Lecacheux, the company has been able to tackle.<\/p>\n \u201cThe second point is that we needed to raise funds, and public funds and subsides were as expected, so it was good news,\u201d Lecacheux continued. \u201cThen for private funds, you need to find people who are ready to take risks with you to build a big project like that. It takes more time than we expected at the beginning, and finding the partners at the beginning of the project, to join a big project like that, takes a lot of time these days.\u201d<\/p>\n