Solar Recycling
The industry’s go-to leader for certified solar panel recycling.
Solar power is rapidly becoming a cornerstone of global energy—but reaching a full clean-energy shift will demand an enormous number of panels. To ensure this transition is genuinely sustainable, we need a circular approach to how these systems are made, used, and retired. By prioritizing repair, refurbishment, reuse, and eventually recycling, we can accelerate the shift to clean energy while reducing the need for new resource extraction and its associated environmental impacts.
Solar PV modules are everywhere…on rooftops, streetlights, parking meters, and ground-mounted, utility-scale farms. Globally, over 100,000 solar panels are installed every hour of every day. There are currently over 45 million tonnes (50 million tons) of modules deployed throughout North America; that’s the equivalent weight of 122 Empire State Buildings. Unfortunately catastrophic damage can cause early loss before the modules reach their end-of-life, turning assets into liabilities.
Currently there has been a trend toward “repowering” where, first generation modules are removed from utility-scale farms and replaced with newer modules with a higher watt output. If possible, these modules should be repurposed to secondary markets that do not require high efficiency panels.
SUNSET has been working with industry, academia, and government to develop advanced deconstruction methods and separation of the various components of a solar module. We can do this cheaper than landfill options regardless of site location, and provide you with a certificate showing responsible elimination of your liabilities.
We also provide consultancy for developers and stakeholders to implement best management practices in order to mitigate and manage site infrastructure/waste materials during permitting, construction, repowering, and EOL phases of renewable energy facilities.
Our high material recovery rates are transforming solar panel recycling.
Our recycling process is capable of recovering as much as 98% of the valuable materials in solar panels – far exceeding today’s industry average, which remains below 50%. By reclaiming glass, silicon, and key metals like silver, copper, and aluminum, recycling end-of-life panels helps strengthen the domestic supply chain for manufacturing new solar technology.
Technology Innovation
SUNSET has developed innovative proprietary technology that will be a critical solution to deconstruct solar modules into their raw materials. Our novel invention is modular, mobile, energy efficient, carbon negative, automated, safe, & cost effective compared to conventional e-waste methodologies. It allows for clean separation of components, achieving the efficient collection of quality recycled materials for downstream applications. This is a game changing technology which may become the standard for the way we approach PV solar module recycling throughout Canada and Internationally!
Recycle Your Solar Panels
Whether you are planning for future decommissioning of your solar modules or need to manage materials currently at their end of life, we are here to help!