Solar cells have grown explosively over the past decade and this can create swells in developing countries. In line with technological developments, newly set environmental targets and with panels that drop in performance after a long period of use, it becomes inevitable in many cases to replace their solar cells. A Bloomberg debate article, and with the International Renewable Energy Agency as its main source, predicts that as much as 78 million tons of solar cells will be consumed worldwide by 2050 - and that is considered a major understatement as prices fall.
Now it is predicted that more and more used panels will end up in poorer countries and that it could potentially become a secondary market worth many billions.
Many second-hand deals take place online
Between 2010 and 2019, the number of people living without electricity fell from 1.2 billion to 759 million worldwide. One of the reasons is that more and more people are getting smaller photovoltaic plants, unconnected to a fixed network, in the home or village. No one yet knows how much a secondary market for solar panels has generated today as most deals today take place in the shadows, often online through, for example, Facebook. But Laid Sahraoui, owner of Hong Kong-based solar cell company R3 Tech, guesses to Bloomberg that there are 10 million panels used in the existing global market - calling that figure "pessimistic.
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