Photovoltaic panel component types and prices

What is a PV module?

PV modules are known as solar panels or solar electric panels. We’ll be using the terms interchangeably throughout this article although “PV module” is the more technically correct terminology. Solar panels provide electricity from sunlight.

How much does a PV system cost?

The price of most large residential or commercial PV modules can range between $2.20 and $3.40 per rated watt. In PV system terminology, everything besides the PV modules themselves is called “balance of system” or BOS. We’ll go over the main BOS components below, one at a time, in the direction of electricity flow through a typical system.

How much does a PV module cost?

The November 2021 technical report considers a PV module cost of $0.34 per watt, which is equivalent to: As the size of a solar array increases, photovoltaic modules represent a higher percentage of total costs, while the percentage of soft costs decreases.

What is PV system cost model (pvscm)?

The total cost over the service life of the system is amortized to give a levelized cost per year. In the PV System Cost Model (PVSCM), the owner’s overnight capital expense (cash cost) for an installed PV system is divided into eight categories, which are the same for the utility-scale, commercial, and residential PV market segments:

How do market analysts evaluate the cost of PV systems?

Market analysts routinely monitor and report the average cost of PV systems and components, but more detail is needed to understand the impact of recent and future technology developments on cost. Consequently, benchmark systems in the utility-scale, commercial, and residential PV market sectors are evaluated each year.

Where did photovoltaic cost data come from?

Photovoltaic cost data between 1975 and 2003 has been taken from Nemet (2009), between 2004 and 2009 from Farmer & Lafond (2016), and since 2010 from IRENA. Prices from Nemet (2009) and Farmer & Lafond (2016) have been converted to 2024 US$ using the US GDP deflator, to account for the effects of inflation.