As Europe’s solar fleet ages, a key question is emerging: can retired solar panels become a source of valuable raw materials? New research from the EU-funded QUASAR project explores the scale of future solar panel waste and the potential for recovering secondary silicon.
Europe could see up to 6.9 million tonnes of solar panel waste by 2040
The study models two end-of-life scenarios and accounts for factors often left out of waste projections: how efficiently panels are collected, how many get a second life through reuse before being scrapped, and how much silicon can be recovered and refined back to usable purity.
The study projects cumulative end-of-life c-Si PV waste in the EU to reach roughly 3.6 to 6.9 million tonnes by 2040. From that waste stream, an estimated 71,000 to 126,000 tonnes of secondary silicon could be recovered — enough to support a meaningful share of future PV manufacturing at current silicon consumption rates, reducing reliance on virgin material.
A new source of silicon for Europe’s solar industry
Silicon is on the EU’s list of Critical Raw Materials. As more solar panels approach end-of-life, investments in collection infrastructure, reuse pathways, and recycling technology will determine whether their silicon becomes a valuable domestic resource for Europe’s PV manufacturing industry or a growing waste management burden.
