Solar power plant waste management for EPC and O&M
From construction to operation, every plant takes modules out of the field: broken in transport, during cleaning, by hail or in repowering. SunR collects and recycles these modules and delivers the MTR (Brazilian waste transport manifest), the CDF (certificate of final disposal) and a disposal report for each batch.
Who is responsible for the waste of a solar power plant
Under the PNRS (Brazil's National Solid Waste Policy, Law 12.305/2010), whoever generates the waste is responsible for it until final disposal is proven. At a power plant, this applies to the EPC during construction, and to the plant and the O&M provider during operation.
The proof is documentary: the MTR (waste transport manifest) for every pickup and the CDF (certificate of final disposal) issued by the disposal company. These are the documents that answer an inspection, a lender's audit or a sustainability report.
During construction (EPC): waste from the first module delivery
The EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) phase generates the most waste per month. Some modules arrive broken from transport, others crack during installation, and pallets, cardboard, plastic wrapping and cable offcuts pile up.
What works on site is separation at the source: damaged modules in one identified batch, packaging in another, with a defined storage area and pickups scheduled in the construction timeline. A module that arrives broken from the factory may also be a warranty case, so the batch is recorded before it is removed.
SunR handles the modules. Pallets, cardboard, plastic and cable offcuts follow the site's waste management plan, with licensed waste handlers for each type.
During operation (O&M): breakage, insurance claims and repowering
Once the plant is running, the volume drops, but it does not stop. Modules break during cleaning and maintenance, lose performance due to defects, and come out of the field in large numbers after hail or windstorms. Later on come repowering and decommissioning.
The risk in O&M is accumulation. Removed modules sit in the yard or warehouse waiting for volume; they degrade, take up space and remain a liability on the environmental balance sheet. A broken module still generates voltage in sunlight, and cracked glass cuts whoever handles it. Periodic pickups, with the same documentation standard across every plant in the portfolio, solve this.
- Breakage during cleaning, maintenance and from impacts.
- Defects found in inspections: hot spots, diodes, microcracks.
- Insurance claims: hail and windstorms take thousands of modules out at once.
- Repowering and retrofit: planned replacement of modules and equipment.
What SunR does, from construction to maintenance
Modules in the waste plan
The module section of the plant's waste management plan: how to separate, store and dispose of them, adapted to the project phase. Other waste goes to licensed waste handlers.
Segregation and storage
Guidance on sorting modules by condition, palletizing them safely and keeping batches identified until pickup.
Tracked pickup
Pickups with the MTR issued in the official system, scheduled alongside the construction or maintenance timeline. Freight can be hired by the plant or arranged by SunR; this changes who bears the cost and the risk in transit.
100% mechanical recycling
No chemicals, at the Montes Claros/MG facility. Glass, aluminum and cables come out separated; the PMM, containing silicon and silver, goes on to metal recovery. More than 80% of the module is recovered.
CDF and disposal report
Certificate of final disposal, a batch report with quantities, weights, dates and the destination of the materials, and a video of the process.
The liability already in the field
A 50 MWp plant built in 2018 with 450 Wp modules, weighing about 23 kg each, has close to 111,000 modules. At a loss rate of 0.5% per year, about 4,400 modules are already out of operation: close to 100 tonnes, eight truckloads. With larger modules, weighing up to about 30 kg, the tonnage rises. The solar liability calculator (in Portuguese) runs this calculation for your plant.
This is the volume SunR has been receiving since 2020, when it became the first photovoltaic panel recycler in Latin America: more than 6,000 tonnes and 190,000 modules contracted, across more than 360 pickups. SunR is a partner of PV CYCLE, the European photovoltaic recycling association, and collects with no minimum volume, from homes to power plants.
Guides and tools for power plants, EPC and O&M
Solar plant repowering (in Portuguese)
What to do with the removed modules when the plant switches to more powerful models.
Ver maisDecommissioning and retrofit
Steps, documents and the destination of each material when a plant is dismantled.
Ver maisAerial thermographic inspection
A drone with a thermal camera to find defective modules without stopping generation.
Ver maisSolar liability calculator (in Portuguese)
How many modules and how many tonnes your plant has already accumulated.
Ver maisCases (in Portuguese)
Real projects, with published figures.
Ver maisMTR, CDF and disposal report (in Portuguese)
What each document must contain and what to require from your recycler.
Ver maisDo you have idle modules on site or at the plant?
Tell us how many there are, where they are and what condition they are in. SunR will reply with the pickup plan and the documents your plant will receive.
Frequently asked questions
Who is responsible for the waste of a solar power plant?
The generator, under the PNRS (Brazil's National Solid Waste Policy, Law 12.305/2010): the EPC during construction, and the plant, together with the O&M provider, during operation. Responsibility lasts until final disposal is proven.
Which documents prove how the modules were disposed of?
The MTR (Brazilian waste transport manifest) for each shipment, the CDF (certificate of final disposal) issued by the recycler and the disposal report for the batch.
Can a module that arrives broken be discarded right away?
Register the batch first: a module that arrives broken from the factory may be a warranty case. After the record is made, it goes to recycling with MTR and CDF.
Is it better to build up volume before requesting a pickup?
It rarely pays off. Idle modules degrade, take up space and remain a liability. Periodic pickups, scheduled with construction or maintenance, prevent the build-up.
Does SunR handle inverters, mounting structures and packaging?
SunR handles the photovoltaic modules. Inverters, mounting structures, field cables, packaging and construction leftovers follow the plant's waste management plan, with licensed waste handlers.
Does SunR serve portfolios with several plants?
Yes. The same pickup and documentation standard applies to every plant in the portfolio, which makes consolidation for audits and ESG reports easier.
Is there a minimum volume for a pickup?
No. SunR collects with no minimum volume, from homes to power plants.