Photovoltaic Module Tiering: A brief guide to understanding its meaning

Written By: nuvision Published In: The Module Toolbox Created Date: 2015-02-19 Hits: 2413

A look at the module tiering system means and what relevance it has to your choice of module.

Often a PV module is marketed as Tier 1 but what does this really mean?

There are many articles and different interpretations of the PV module tiering system so we thought we would clear this up.

Why is there a tiering system?

Bloomberg new energy finance developed a tiering system for PV modules to advise their customers on the bankability of PV modules. This was to create a difference between the manufactures currently operating in the PV market.

The Tiering categorisation should never be used as criteria for the quality of the module, instead certification such as TUV, CE and PID certification should be used as a sign of quality. 

What are the qualification brackets for the Tiering of modules?

Tier 1

To be considered a Tier 1 module manufacturers must those supply own-branded, own-manufactured products to five different projects, which have been financed non-recourse by five different (non-development) banks, in the past two years.

The projects must be over 1.5MW and tracked on the Bloomberg database and the project must be in the public domain. The classification is a measure of industry acceptance and there are examples of Tier 1 manufacturers going bankrupt.

Tier 2

Module makers which have supplied modules to a few projects with bank financing, and have some industry standing, are considered Tier 2.

Tier 3

Module makers where there is little data on the deployment of their products, or which have filed for insolvency protection, are considered tier 3. Suppliers exiting insolvency protection must meet the normal tier 1 and 2 criteria in their new incarnation.

For more information about tiering please click on the link.

http://about.bnef.com/content/uploads/sites/4/2012/12/bnef_2012-12-03_PVModuleTiering.pdf

As you can see the Tiering system has very little to do with the quality of a module and purely about the bankability of the company and their long term financial prospects. The tiering system is a useful guide for purchasing a module from a manufacturer that manufactures of their own modules and should be in the market for the considerable future.