SunDrive

SunDrive, an Australian solar technology firm, is addressing cost and efficiency challenges in the photovoltaic (PV) market by substituting silver with copper in the production of solar cells. The company's core technology, which originated from the PhD research of co-founder and CEO Vince Allen at the University of New South Wales, focuses on a proprietary process to plate copper onto silicon wafers. This approach tackles a significant bottleneck in solar manufacturing, as silver accounts for a substantial portion of a solar cell's production cost and the industry consumes a large percentage of the world's annual silver supply. Copper, being approximately 100 times cheaper and 1,000 times more abundant, offers a more sustainable and scalable alternative.

Founded in 2015 by Allen and his university flatmate David Hu, the company began in a Sydney garage and has since achieved significant technical milestones. SunDrive has set multiple world records for commercial-sized solar cell efficiency, with results verified by Germany's Institute for Solar Energy Research (ISFH). In September 2021, it reached 25.54% efficiency, surpassing the previous record holder. This was followed by further records, including 26.07% in March 2022. These high-efficiency ratings mean that more power can be generated from a smaller surface area, a key benefit for the rooftop solar market.

SunDrive's business model is centered on solar cell metallisation, the final and critical step in the cell production process. The company plans to integrate its copper plating technology into the production lines of established solar panel manufacturers. To facilitate this, SunDrive has entered into strategic collaborations and joint development agreements with global solar equipment and manufacturing leaders like Maxwell Technologies, Vistar Equipment Technology, and Trinasolar. These partnerships are crucial for scaling its technology from pilot production to commercial-scale manufacturing. The company is initially targeting next-generation cell structures like heterojunction (HJT) technology, which typically require more silver, amplifying the cost-saving benefits of its copper-based process. SunDrive has secured substantial funding from a mix of venture capital firms, including Blackbird Ventures and Main Sequence, and government bodies like the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) and the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC). These investments are fueling the expansion of its production capacity, with plans to establish large-scale manufacturing facilities in Australia.

Keywords: copper metallisation, solar cell efficiency, heterojunction technology, photovoltaic manufacturing, silver replacement, solar technology, renewable energy, high-efficiency solar, silicon wafer, PV manufacturing