Marubeni Power Retail, SunVillage, and Rexia Solar started to jointly study the potential for introducing a business model that would see the companies develop off-site PPA projects using used solar panels, the companies announced on October 2, 2024.
The scheme would be based on a model similar to that used in a PPA announced by the companies this March. SunVillage would develop solar projects using discarded but still reusable panels, such as those removed due to natural disasters or repowering, procured from Rexia Solar. Marubeni Power Retail would then buy the generated power and sell it on to its customers.
The power plants would be owned by special purpose companies that would then sign asset management contracts with Marubeni Power Retail and operation and maintenance (O&M) contracts with SunVillage.
The companies see the model as one of the ways to minimize the volume of discarded solar panels, which is expected to reach 500,000 to 800,000 tons per year by the mid-2030s.
