Price Reduction of Solar Thermal Systems
Technology Position Paper
May 2020 - PDF 0.2MB

The number of solar thermal installations has been declining in the past years, while photovoltaic solar energy use has been booming. This trend stands in opposition to the fact that the need for domestic hot water is steadily increasing worldwide. To strengthen the competitiveness and market uptake of solar thermal applications, Task 54 of the International Energy Agency’s Solar Heating and Cooling Technology Collaboration Programme (IEA SHC) investigated the entire solar thermal value chain with respect to technical and non-technical cost reduction potentials and ways to make the technology more attractive to the end-user.

IEA SHC Task 54: Solar Thermal Cost Reductions
November 2017
Publisher: Solarthermalworld.org

The objective of IEA SHC Task 54 is to reduce the purchase price of solar thermal systems by up to 40 % across the entire value chain. To achieve this, the project partners have been evaluating technical and non-technical cost-saving potential, with low-cost materials, such as polymers, and production technologies bound to play an important role. At an early October workshop in Linz, Austria, about 50 project partners and guests discussed cost reductions made possible by new distribution channels, digital solutions and systems thinking approaches.

IEA SHC Task 54 Investigating Cost Factors Along the Value Chain
Publisher: Solarthermalworld.org

Researchers have worked intensively for one-and-a-half years across national borders to find ways of reducing the costs of solar thermal systems and making them more attractive to end users. The members of Task 54 of the IEA Solar Heating and Cooling Programme, Price Reduction of Solar Thermal Systems, have discussed the effects of standardised product designs or changes in product offerings on cost structures. They have also analysed the entire value chain from component manufacture to system assembly and installation to help identify cost-cutting potential. This is the first time that methods of Process Cost Analysis are being adapted for the solar thermal business.