Hanwha Q CELLS, First in Industry to Obtain Korea Carbon Certification Grade 1

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] Hanwha Q CELLS became the first and only company in the industry to receive a Grade 1 certification under the "Solar Module Carbon Certification System," implemented by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on the 16th to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The solar modules that Hanwha Q CELLS obtained Grade 1 certification for this time are seven types from the Q.PEAK DUO series, which will be supplied to domestic customers starting from the fourth quarter of this year.

The Solar Module Carbon Certification System is a system implemented by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy from the 22nd of last month to quantify and manage the total amount of carbon dioxide emissions generated during the solar module production process and to foster eco-friendly industries through efforts to reduce carbon emissions.

The Solar Module Carbon Certification System quantifies (CO2·kg) and verifies the total greenhouse gas emissions per unit output (1 kW) emitted throughout the entire solar module manufacturing process. The total greenhouse gas emissions are evaluated by summing the emissions generated during the solar module manufacturing process and the emissions from power consumption for production.

Solar modules are classified into three grades according to carbon emissions, and differentiated incentives are applied by grade in this year’s RPS fixed-price contract competitive bidding and government subsidy projects. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy estimated that if this system reduces greenhouse gases by 10% per solar module installed domestically, it could reduce 230,000 tons annually, which is equivalent to the effect of planting about 2 million pine trees.

The Solar Module Carbon Certification System is expected to spread mainly in Europe. Since 2011, France has been implementing a system similar to the domestic Solar Module Carbon Certification System called the "Carbon Footprint for Product (CFP)." The French government reflects the carbon footprint score as an evaluation criterion in public procurement solar facility bids with a facility scale of 100 kilowatts (kW) or more to encourage the use of low-carbon solar modules. Hanwha Q CELLS is the only domestic company to have obtained carbon emission certification under the French Carbon Footprint system and is targeting the French market.

Additionally, the European Union (EU) is unifying eco-friendly product policies within Europe through the Sustainable Market for Green Products (SMGP) policy and is establishing policies that allow consumers to objectively purchase eco-friendly products in the market. A bill to introduce the Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) system, which includes the solar module carbon footprint, is expected to be submitted within this year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.