Enertis Applus+ to Conduct Module Supply and Quality Control Services for More Than 2.5 GWp of U.S. PV Projects

• Quality assurance and quality control services include technical advisory during negotiations with module suppliers, factory audits, supervision of the manufacturing process, and pre-shipment module testing.
• The solar PV projects use large, bifacial PV modules from seven Tier-1 vendors in four Asian countries.
• Enertis Applus+ is monitoring the projects’ PV-module supply chains to ensure there are no forced labor issues involved.

Global consulting, engineering, quality control, and testing firm, Enertis Applus+, with deep expertise in the renewable energy and storage sectors, is providing supply chain and quality control and quality assurance (QA/QC) inspection services for several solar photovoltaic (PV) projects in the United States with a total capacity of 2.5 GWp. Most services have been completed in 2022, and the rest are to be conducted throughout 2023.

Through risk mitigation of long-term PV project predictability, Enertis Applus+ QA/QC services focus on preventing the procurement and commissioning of non-reliable components to protect client profits and ensure safety.

The capacity of the solar PV projects, located in Texas, Ohio, Illinois, Louisiana, West Virginia, New York, and Maine, range from 50 megawatts peak (MWp) to 600+ MWp. All inspected and evaluated PV modules use bifacial mono-Passivated Emitter and Rear Contact (PERC) cells, including large-size, 550W+ modules.

Among the services provided, the Enertis Applus+ team acted as an independent third party for supply chain traceability controls. They ruled out the presence of any inconsistencies or risks generated directly or indirectly by unethical labor practices, especially concerning the raw material, polysilicon, produced in Xinjiang, China.

Members of the Enertis Applus+ team also acted as technical advisors during negotiations with the projects’ main components suppliers. These advisory services ensured that the main components were manufactured under the contractually required quality standards, technical specifications, and warranty terms.

Enertis Applus+ highly qualified, Asia-based, ISO/IEC-17020-accredited inspectors audited all seven international module-supplier factories in Vietnam, India, Cambodia, and Thailand to assess factory conditions and the Bill of Materials (BOM). Enertis Applus+ inspectors also supervised the manufacturing processes to detect non-conformities in products and evaluate procedures. They performed PV module tests at the Enertis Applus+ CBTL/IECEE ISO/IEC 17025 accredited laboratory in Shanghai.

According to Dr. Vicente Parra, Head of Quality and Technology at Enertis Applus+, “We are proud that our Enertis Applus+ team of highly qualified inspectors, engineers, and Senior Project Managers can provide high-value-added services for the booming U.S. solar market. Our team works to protect the reliability and profitability of our clients’ PV assets and helps our clients to understand the level of exposure to potential forced labor practices in their supply chains.”