The TCL Solar C2 back-contact module range is now in Europe and open for order through the brand's distributor network, TCL SunPower Global said. First deliveries begin in the UK this week, with a wider European rollout over the following weeks.
The range was introduced in June at SNEC in Shanghai and Intersolar Europe in Munich, the company said. Steven Zhang, general manager of TCL SunPower Global, said the company had scaled up production over the past year, including through its acquisition of DAS Solar's back-contact cell and module manufacturing operations, completed in July, and cited more than 1,600 back-contact patents and four decades of photovoltaic manufacturing experience. Back-contact is now the company's flagship technology platform, he said.
Two configurations sit on the same back-contact cell. The C2 S Black is intended for residential and small commercial roofs, at up to 495 W and 23.8% efficiency. The C2 L and C2 L UPP are intended for larger commercial and utility-scale projects, at up to 670 W and 24.8% efficiency, with bifaciality of up to 85% on the L and L UPP variants.
The panels use a full-screen gapless back-contact design with no metal busbars on the front, which the company says adds more than 5% usable power density per panel against a conventional front-contact layout of the same size, because more active cell surface faces the sun. The company also cites a temperature coefficient of -0.26%/°C and an annual degradation rate below 0.35%, which it says leaves a panel at about 88.85% of its original output after 30 years. Warranty cover runs to up to 25 years for the product and 30 years for power, depending on model.
Karin Alberto Burkhardt, director of PV products at TCL SunPower Global, said removing the front-side grid lines that shade a conventional panel is what drives the efficiency gain. She said the same design gives the residential S Black model a uniform black finish, while the C2 L and L UPP variants pair it with bifacial, glass-glass construction. The company directs installers and commercial buyers to a distributor locator at tclsolar.com.
