Solarcycle, a solar recycling company, announced the opening of its new headquarters in Mesa, AZ. In addition to office space and a recycling facility, the headquarters is also equipped with a research lab that will employ scientists and engineers to work on the advancing the material refinement process to reach zero-waste and obtain the most value out of decommissioned panels. The Mesa facility will initially recycle 250,000 solar panels each year, and ramp to one million panels per year to keep pace with growing market demand in the solar industry for its recycling and circular supply chain services.
With the rapid growth in solar energy in the U.S., there is also growing concern about what will happen to solar panels at the end of their useful life. Without an increase in solar recycling, the U.S. will contribute 10 million metric tons of trash in landfills and other waste facilities by 2050, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). To put into context, the U.S. dumps almost 140 million tons of waste each year, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
Solarcycle reports that its proprietary technology enables the extraction of 95% of the value from recycled panels, including silver, silicon, copper, aluminum and glass. The company sells these higher-purity materials back to the domestic supply chain.