en.Wedoany.com Reported - French photovoltaic module manufacturer Voltec has developed a new cell layout that increases the output power of its residential solar modules by nearly 4% without changing the module dimensions.
Voltec Director Lucas Weiss explained that the core of the design involves arranging the cells perpendicular to the module's length direction, rather than the industry-standard parallel arrangement. This allows the module to accommodate 50 cells while keeping the residential module size largely unchanged, whereas competitors typically can only fit 48 cells.
Each cell has a rated power of 9.5 watts. With the new layout, the module power increases by 18 to 19 watts, reaching 470 watts. Weiss stated that this performance is now comparable to back-contact (BC) modules, giving the company a competitive advantage. The design has been applied to Voltec's Tarka product series.
Alongside the product redesign, Voltec upgraded one production line in June to handle G12R-size cells. The company is investing 1.5 million euros (approximately 1.8 million USD) and plans to convert a second production line to this size by the end of the year. After the upgrade, Voltec's annual production capacity will remain at 500 megawatts, all based on tunnel oxide passivated contact (TOPCon) technology. Previously, the company had two production lines, one of which was still producing passivated emitter and rear cell (PERC) technology modules. Weiss noted that this move will help improve the cost structure.
Voltec is also expected to benefit from France's new resilience criteria for photovoltaic project tenders. These criteria require eligible projects—including small-scale photovoltaic systems between 100 kW and 500 kW and ground-mounted solar installations—to use photovoltaic modules not assembled in China, and at least four of the eight designated strategic components in the modules must come from countries outside China. Weiss believes that the resilience criteria will reasonably increase the cost of importing modules from Asia, while the cost of the company's modules is declining.
Additionally, France's 5.5% value-added tax reduction policy for residential photovoltaic systems under 9 kW has boosted market demand. Voltec reported that its sales have increased by an average of four times since October 2025.
