Panel end-of-life disposal liability and balance of plant recovery value, combined into a net recovery position. For thin-film technologies and smaller sites, the net position is typically a cost. For large ground-mount crystalline silicon sites, BOP copper and aluminium recovery often exceeds the panel disposal liability.
UK WEEE Regulations 2013 — mandatory WEEE-compliant treatment for all crystalline and thin-film panels. No landfill route available.
Monocrystalline silicon — current standard. ~65 kg/kWp. Silver contacts present but uneconomic to recover at current concentrations (~20 g/kWp). Source: IRENA/IEA-PVPS.
Ground mount: aluminium racking ~18 kg/kWp, steel piling ~15 kg/kWp, DC copper ~3 kg/kWp. Fixed-tilt basis — single-axis tracker sites carry ~20–30% more steel. Sources: IEA PVPS Task 12, NREL.
What this estimate includes and excludes
Included: Merchant margin and haulage on BOP (aluminium racking, steel piling, DC copper cabling). Panel disposal or recycling cost at the applicable rate for the selected market and route.
Not included: Primary removal labour (panel detachment, racking dismantling). Inverter removal and disposal. Foundation reinstatement or ground restoration. Contractor margin. These are additional cost items that reduce the net recovery position beyond the figure shown.
BOP scrap prices: Fastmarkets and Argus Scrap Markets assessed prices, March 2026. Panel disposal costs are planning-assumption ranges only — no publicly quoted tariff schedule exists for any market. Use the disposal cost slider to select your working assumption within the range for your market.
| Material / cost | UK · £ | EEA · € | US · $ | AU · A$ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aluminium racking — old cast / mixed Argus Scrap Markets, delivered merchant basis | 1,250/t | 1,350/t | 1,400/t | 1,600/t |
| Steel structural / piling — HMS 1&2 Fastmarkets domestic assessed, delivered consumer | 207/t | 300/t | 330/t | 350/t |
| Copper DC cabling — mixed cable grades Argus Scrap Markets, LME discount basis | 6,500/t | 7,600/t | 8,600/t | 9,500/t |
Panel mass and composition
Panel mass per kWp by technology is drawn from IRENA/IEA-PVPS (2016) "End-of-Life Management: Solar Photovoltaic Panels" — the primary published source for solar material composition data. Mono-Si ~65 kg/kWp, poly-Si ~70 kg/kWp, CdTe ~80 kg/kWp (glass-glass construction, no aluminium frame), CIGS ~55 kg/kWp. Glass constitutes 70–90% of panel mass across all technologies and has no viable recovery market at current recycling economics.
Balance of plant masses
Ground-mount BOP composition: aluminium racking ~18 kg/kWp, structural steel piling ~15 kg/kWp, DC copper cabling ~3 kg/kWp. Rooftop commercial: aluminium racking ~7 kg/kWp, DC copper ~2.5 kg/kWp (structural steel excluded — part of building fabric). Figures are on a fixed-tilt basis; single-axis tracker sites carry approximately 20–30% more structural steel (torque tube and posts) and are not separately modelled. Sources: IEA PVPS Task 12 LCI report (T12-19:2020) and NREL UPV LCA (TP-7A40-87372, 2024).
Panel disposal costs
No publicly quoted per-tonne tariff schedule exists for solar panel disposal in any market. The slider ranges are planning-assumption ranges calibrated against available evidence. UK / EEA: Net cost to waste holder typically £250–500+/t all-in (treatment + palletising + loading + transport). Bare WEEE treatment only: approximately £150–300/t. US: Wide variation by state; inert crystalline Si glass may qualify for C&D landfill rates ($25–45/t); specialist recycling $200–400/t; RCRA-compliant hazardous waste treatment (CdTe/CIGS) $400–650/t. Australia: Mandatory EPR not yet enacted; costs carry wider uncertainty.