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Climate Confident - Practical Climate Solutions That Cut Emissions

Perovskite Solar Cells Explained: Less Land, Lower Costs, More Power

May 07, 2025 • Tom Raftery • Season 1 • Episode 219

0:00 | 46:43

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In this episode of the Climate Confident podcast, I spoke with Laura Miranda Perez, Chief Communications & Sustainability Officer at Oxford PV, about one of the most important developments in solar tech today: perovskite-silicon tandem solar cells.

We unpacked how Oxford PV’s approach improves solar panel efficiency from the typical 20–22% to over 30%, and why that matters not just for land use, but also for grid capacity, system costs, and the speed of global decarbonisation. Laura also explained how tandem cells work, why silicon has hit a performance ceiling, and how perovskite offers a new path forward.

We dug into the real-world implications:

Why higher efficiency panels lower the cost of electricity, not just hardware
How tandem solar can reduce emissions by 20% or more, even compared to conventional solar
What’s holding Europe back in solar manufacturing, despite strong deployment figures
Why utilities, not just residential customers, are driving early demand for Oxford PV’s tech

Laura also addressed common misconceptions about solar, including whether it works in cloudy weather and the overblown concerns about solar panel waste.

If you’re working in clean energy, manufacturing, or just curious about where solar is headed, this is a must-listen conversation.

🔗 More on Oxford PV: https://www.oxfordpv.com

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