Art-PV, incubated at IIT Bombay, has received a USD 10 million grant from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) to establish a manufacturing plant for high-efficiency tandem solar cells.

The company’s innovation involves a tandem cell that achieves 29.8 percent sunlight-to-electricity conversion, surpassing the 23 percent efficiency of conventional solar cells. 

The technology combines silicon with cadmium telluride (CdTe) and a perovskite-structured material, which absorbs a broader light spectrum to enhance efficiency. 

With perovskite’s inherent instability as a challenge, Art-PV’s method of layering it onto a silicon base addresses this issue.

Industry partners First Solar and Waaree will help commercialise the technology, leveraging preferential licensing rights. 

Art-PV’s tandem cell is nearing a TRL of six or seven, with plans for a two MW pilot plant at IIT Bombay.