A great story of innovation and sustainability is that of 3Sun, as Enel’s CEO Francesco Starace explained in an article emphasizing that it is set to become Europe’s largest production facility for high-performance bifacial photovoltaic panels. “Sometimes the speed of certain technological developments can be hard to believe, it can seem as if history has suddenly been put on fast-forward. And you realize how quickly situations can evolve if you point them in the right direction.” As the CEO underlined, one such example for Enel was the growth path of 3Sun. In the so-called “Etna Valley” – Sicily’s industrial and technological hub – the company achieved goals of international relevance in less than 12 years after its creation. On April 1st, 2022, it made “another important leap forward” and obtained European funds for innovation: “Thanks to an investment of around 600 million euros, of which almost 118 million have been contributed by the European Fund for Innovation for large-scale projects, 3SUN is set to become what we call a Gigafactory, with the development of the TANGO (iTaliAN pv Giga factOry) project. It will produce a total of 3 GW of panels each year, a 15-fold increase with respect to its current output, thus making it Europe’s largest production facility for high-performance bifacial photovoltaic panels.”
“3SUN is set to become a Gigafactory, with the development of the TANGO (iTaliAN pv Giga factOry) project. It will produce a total of 3 GW of panels each year, a 15-fold increase with respect to its current output, thus making it Europe’s largest production facility for high-performance bifacial photovoltaic panels”
Francesco Starace, Enel CEO
Quella di 3Sun, osserva poi Francesco Starace, è “una storia di successo ancora più significativa se si pensa che, all’epoca della fondazione di 3Sun, ci eravamo avventurati su un terreno nuovo per Enel: siamo sempre stati abituati a produrre un bene quasi intangibile come l’energia, mentre in questo caso fabbrichiamo qualcosa di concreto come i pannelli fotovoltaici”. È un’impresa a cui Enel riconosce grande valore: “Creando una filiera di produzione interna riduciamo la dipendenza dall’estero, e rilanciamo la spinta all’innovazione tecnologica per raggiungere livelli di efficienza sempre maggiori. Il tutto con l’obiettivo di promuovere una diffusione crescente dell’energia solare, promuovendo allo stesso tempo una regionalizzazione della catena del valore in Europa”. I benefici riguardano anche il territorio e in particolare l’occupazione: “A Catania 3Sun ha un ruolo trainante all’interno del polo tecnologico locale, nonché una funzione importante dal punto di vista occupazionale, fra posti di lavoro diretti e indotto, per l’economia locale. Si stima che la Gigafactory aumenterà l'occupazione nell’area di circa 1.000 posti di lavoro entro il 2024”.
E in attesa di diventare la prima fabbrica d’Europa per numero di pannelli prodotti, 3Sun è “già oggi, e da anni, un fiore all’occhiello nell’innovazione tecnologica e nell’automazione dei processi industriali”, ribadisce infine Francesco Starace nel suo articolo: “Si sta lavorando allo sviluppo di nuove tecnologie che possano permettere l’utilizzo di nuovi materiali di recupero, come ad esempio la plastica riciclata, ed è stata la prima al mondo ad approcciarsi al riciclo dei materiali provenienti dalla lavorazione, come l’argento, i vetri, le resine e l’indio: si tratta di un modello di economia circolare che conferisce alla fabbrica un ulteriore livello di sostenibilità ambientale – un valore basilare per il Gruppo Enel ed una vocazione naturale per un impianto che produce pannelli solari”.
Francesco Starace also observed that the success story of 3Sun is “even more significant when we consider that, at the time of 3Sun’s foundation, this was a new area for Enel. Until then we had always produced a good that is almost intangible – energy, but in this case we were making something concrete – photovoltaic panels.” It is an enterprise of great value to Enel: “Creating an internal production chain and reducing dependence on foreign resources, boosting technological innovation to achieve ever better efficiency levels. All this is with the aim of promoting a growing roll-out of solar energy, while helping to regionalize the value chain in Europe.” This also benefits the local area and, in particular, employment: “In Catania, 3Sun has played a driving role in the local technology hub, as well as an important role in terms of employment for the local economy, if we consider direct jobs and related activities. It has been estimated that the Gigafactory will create around 1,000 jobs in the area by 2024.”
While on its way to becoming Europe’s largest producer of PV panels, 3Sun “is today, and has been for some years, a flagship in terms of innovation technology and automation of industrial processes,” Francesco Starace finally reiterated in the article: “Work is being carried out on the development of new technologies that can enable the use of new, recovered materials, such as recycled plastic. 3Sun was also the first factory of this type in the world to attempt to recycle materials used in production processes, such as silver, glass, resins, and indium. This is a circular economy model that makes it even more environmentally sustainable, which is a core value for the Enel Group and a natural vocation for a plant that produces solar panels.”
Further information can be found here:
https://www.enel.com/media/word-from/news/2022/07/3sun-story-solar-panel-factory
Enel editorial staff