German vs Chinese Solar Panels: Efficiency, Quality, and Performance Compared - PHILERGY

Metro Manila, Philippines - The solar energy industry has grown exponentially over the past few years, and there have been innumerable solar component brands that have sprouted to meet the demand. A Google search will bombard you with choices offering the cheapest, or the most efficient, or the best quality.

Germany has long been known for the quality of products manufactured in the country - be it cars, knives, and of course, solar panels. It also has been one of the first European countries to promote renewable energy. But as Germany's solar industry continued to grow, China's solar market dropped world solar panel prices by 80% between 2008 and 2013. Chinese solar panel manufacturers took advantage of the overwhelmed German solar companies due to the domestic response caused by government incentives and flooded the market with cheap panels. [Source]

Buying Quality vs Buying Cheap

In 2017, a solar energy company based in Portugal conducted a comparison of identical solar energy systems (same two inverters, in the same area, same orientation and roof inclination) except for the solar panels. Installation A had “German brand” panels but of Chinese origin, and Installation B had panels made in Germany.

Here are the results for the first month of production (Installation A - blue bars, Installation B - red bars):