Recycled Opinions: Have Your Say On Solar Panel Waste Plan

Following the announcement of a national solar panel recycling pilot, a parliamentary inquiry has now opened alongside formal requests for industry and public input — signaling that the wheels are finally turning. We spoke with recyclers to get their perspective.

What Is The National Solar Panel Recycling Pilot?

The pilot itself was announced earlier this year, backed by federal funding to test how end-of-life solar panels can be collected and recycled at scale. Since then the government has released a Request for Information (RFI) to industry, seeking practical input on how a national pilot should operate, while the parliamentary inquiry has opened the door for submissions from industry, experts and the public.

According to the Department of Climate Change, Energy, Environment and Water, the pilot is expected to move into an open procurement phase later this year, with an administrator appointed to run the scheme.

The pilot is slated to begin in mid-2026, testing collection and recycling pathways across around 100 sites nationwide. Its purpose is to gather real-world data on logistics, costs and recovery outcomes, and use that evidence to inform what comes next — including any future national stewardship scheme.

Solar Panel Recycling Challenges On The Ground

To understand what the system needs to grapple with, it helps to look at what’s happening on the ground. Recyclers working in Australia today describe a sector that is technically capable, but structurally constrained.

Anthony Vippone, CEO of Lotus Recycling, points to the lack of consistent standards and oversight across the industry. Without clear definitions and accountability, it’s difficult to know what happens to panels once they leave a site.

“The (national) standards for solar panel recycling are zero. AS/NZS577 (E-Waste Management Systems Certification) doesn’t even mention solar panel recycling requirements, recovery rates, or reporting obligations,” he says.

This absence of a clear recycling standard and stewardship scheme creates a situation where panels can end up in landfill, stockpiled, or illegally exported. In some cases, the public’s goodwill is exploited, with some questionable recycling operators offering to recycle panels, but with no accountability they end up in landfill or buried in a farmer’s paddock.

“We need accountability — massive fines for company directors who mislead the public,” Anthony adds.

 

“In terms of the pilot program going forward, an analogy would be – it would be pointless have speed limits on roads if there were no penalties for breaking them.”

Local Recyclers Undermined By Offshore Exports

James Petesic, founder of solar panel recycling facility PV Industries, agrees that operators taking advantage of the current void in compliance are undermining the commercial viability of legit companies that are trying to do the right thing.

“The major roadblock to our industry has been the illegal offshore export practice. It means that we lose feedstock. The biggest thing that dictates the viability of a recycling business is throughput. If we’re losing up to 80 or 90 percent of panels that are being decommissioned, that’s a massive handbrake on our industry as a whole.”

 

“The best way to counter these illegal practices, instead of policing it better, is to make the economics for the panel (getting to a recycling facility) stack up. So instead of the installer getting paid X amount and offloading to a dodgy operator (for the cheapest price), they should be incentivised to have them properly recycled.”

Further to the viability, James says the economics of disposing of a solar panel in landfill versus a recycling plant is not the major sticking point it used to be.

“Over time solar panel recycling has improved and is now comparable (economically) to disposing in landfill. We’ve got better at recovering more of the panel, and increasing value of the materials on the back end,” he says.

Industry Input Shapes The Pilot

Taken together, Vippone and Petesic highlight some of the gaps that have held the industry back: unclear standards, lack of oversight, and challenges getting panels to recycling facilities. Their insights illustrate exactly the issues the government is now asking industry, experts, and the public to weigh in on through the parliamentary inquiry and RFI.

Have Your Say

The inquiry is open to anyone — industry participants, researchers, environmental groups, or concerned members of the public — and submissions close on the 27th of March.

Meanwhile, the government’s Request for Information (RFI) invites industry input specifically on how the national pilot should operate, with responses due by the 3rd of March.

For potential stakeholders, if you move quick, there’s an industry briefing on the RFI on Monday 16 February at 2:00pm AEDT.  Email [email protected] for a meeting invitation.

Contributions to both processes could help shape the design of the pilot and inform future national policy.

Looking Ahead

Australia’s solar panel recycling sector is still finding its footing, but for the first time, there’s a clear pathway for real-world data, practical feedback, and potential reforms to come together. For those following the industry or looking to influence its future, the inquiry and RFI offer a chance to move beyond talk — and toward a system that actually works.

In the meantime, perhaps the best thing that can be done to reduce solar system waste is to get panels that last a long time – the good news is that most old solar panels appear to be living up to warranty promises, although other new research indicates found a significant minority of panels degrade faster than expected.