Tempress System B.V., part of the Amtech Group, has begun construction on the Europe’s largest bifacial PV power plant next to the headquarters of Tempress in Vassen in the Netherlands. Yingli will supply its PANDA Bifacial modules for the nearly 400kW solar project, which is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2017.

To be consisting of 1,428 Yingli’s PANDA Bifacial solar modules with a nominal power output of 275~280Wp, the project is expected to produce over 400MWh of solar electricity per year after becoming operational.

"We are proud to be the first in Europe to install a bifacial PV plant of such a large size", said Dr. Albert Hasper, General Manager of Tempress. "Besides electricity generation, this plant will also be used as a showcase to prove the benefits of using bifacial module technology."

Yingli’s PANDA Bifacial modules are manufactured with N-type crystalline silicon solar cells based on the n-PERT technology jointly developed by Yingli, Tempress System and ECN. Comprising of two layers of 2.5 mm think tempered glass, photons can be absorbed by the module’s rear side and will generate extra electricity when reflect, increasing the total power yield by up to 30%. Furthermore, the n-type crystalline silicon solar cells used by the PANDA Bifacial module are more sensitive for low light conditions than regular p-type cells.

The PANDA Bifacial modules has been independently tested for harsh environmental conditions such as exposure to salt mist, ammonia and known PID risk factors. They bear a 30-year-liner warranty.

Schulz Systemtechnik BV is responsible for design and installations for the project. The modules will be mounted on a fixed rack specially designed for bifacial modules to optimize the rear side performance and are produced by Benz Alusysteme GmbH. APsystems provides micro inverters for the solar power plant.

This project was granted with a SDE+ subsidy from the Dutch ministry of Economic Affairs to encourage the production of renewable energy in the Netherlands.

(Photo: Yingli Solar's TwinMAX bifacial module displayed at PV EXPO 2017)