Heralding a New Era of Intelligent Buildings

The CIGS-BIPV building in Tonghu Sci-Tech Town of Huizhou, Guangdong Province, has drawn global attention. Featuring photovoltaic curtain walls independently developed by China Energy Group, the intelligent building that creates self-generating electricity meets the national standard of nearly-zero energy consumption for buildings. When the Super Typhoon Mangkhut hit the southern coastal province of Guangdong, the building remained undamaged in any way. A project undertaken by China Energy Conservation and Emission Reduction Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of the group, the building is the first in China to be covered by building-integrated photovoltaic systems (BIPV) based on copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS), setting a paradigm for low-carbon green buildings.

“Innovation is the soul for national progress, as well as dynamics for corporation development,” said Ling Wen, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and CEO of China Energy Group. “The technological innovation of CIGS based on new-generation renewable energy enables transformation of buildings from energy consumers to energy suppliers, marking a brave attempt made for China’s green energy innovations.” According to Zhao Jian, president of China Energy Conservation and Emission Reduction Co., Ltd., with advantages such as low energy consumption and good weak light performance, the CIGS-BIPV technology integrates architectural aesthetics and modern technology and is set to create a massive distributed energy market, steering the photovoltaic industry into the “blue ocean.”

At present, with CIGS-BIPV industry as one of its development objectives, China Energy Group has formulated a “five-in-one” development strategy that integrates technological research and development related to CIGS, high-end equipment manufacturing, high-performance components production, ground power station application and BIPV, aiming to become one of the forerunners in CIGS thin-film solar technology and its application.