Fraunhofer Institute has joined VDE Institute and the Canadian Standards Association Group (CSA) in laying the corner stone for the new solar photovoltaic module test facility in Albuquerque, New Mexico (USA). The sunny city is now home to an international test laboratory that will try to contribute to increasing the efficiency and finding improvements in solar PV technology.

Having a common set of standards for the solar energy industry is something that's needed to create an environment for advancement in this area of solar energy development. International testing and certification will now be available under one roof for all solar PV module manufacturers in North America. This will cut costs for businesses, while at the same time reducing the time needed to introduce new products to the market. The choice of Albuquerque as the new home of the test lab was made considering the fact that the area is also home to numerous solar energy and high-tech companies, but also to the University of New Mexico and the Sandia National Lab facilities.

[source: Fraunhofer]