PVpallet Numbers
Want to know where we get our numbers? Here’s a breakdown of our math as well as some of our primary sources.
Claim: In 2024, the U.S. solar industry spent more than $630 million on single-use packaging CAPEX (wood pallets and related materials). But when factoring in hidden costs like product breakage, wood pallet disposal, and recycling fees, the true cost of single-use packaging in the U.S. exceeds $1.5 billion.
Globally, that figure scales to $7.6 billion in packaging CAPEX and nearly 5 billion pounds of wood waste generated, most of which is used once and then burned or sent to landfills.
Baseline Numbers:
50 GW (32,400 MW) of new capacity installed in the US in 2024 (SEIA)
600 GW of solar installed in 2024 globally (PV Magazine)
425 W average wattage per solar module (Energy Sage)
30 modules per pallet (Sinovoltaics Group)
$200 average cost per solar module ($.50/watt)
$100 average wood pallet/packaging cost
.86 truckloads per MW of BOS components (i.e. harnesses, ATI material, Cab, LBDS, etc.)
56 48x45 pallets of Balance of System components per truckload
26 48x90 pallets of solar panel per truckload
75 pallets per dumpster load
$1,500 per dumpster ($200) plus transit to landfill ($1300)
3% average module breakage rate prior to installation
$11 for disposal/recycling costs (average of $2 in disposal fees or $20 in recycling fees per solar module)
The Math:
1 MW / 425W average per solar module = 2,353 modules per megawatt
2,353 modules / 30 modules per pallet = 79 pallets per megagatt
50,000 MW x 2,353 modules per mw = 117.65M solar modules
50,000 MW x 79 pallets per megawatt = 3.95M pallets for solar modules
3.95M pallets / 26 per truckload = 151,923 truckloads of solar modules
50,000 MW x .86 truckloads = 43,000 truckloads of BOS components
43,000 truckloads x 56 pallets = 2.41M pallets for BOS components
3.95M (solar panel pallets) + 2.41M (BOS component pallets) = 6.36M pallets
6.36M pallets x $100 per wood pallet/packaging = $636M wood pallet CAPEX (U.S.)
600 GW global installations / 50GW domestic installations = Global market is 12 x larger than domestic
12 x $636M domestic CAPEX = $7.63B in Global Packaging CAPEX
6.36M pallets / 75 per dumpster = 84,773 truckloads of wood pallet waste
84,773 truckloads x $1,500 per load to landfill = $127.16M wood pallet disposal costs
3% breakage x 117.65M solar panels = 3.53M broken solar modules
3.53M broken modules x $200 per module = $706M damaged modules
3.53M broken modules x $11 disposal/recycling fees = $38.8M in broken module disposal/recycling fees
$636M wood pallets + $127.16M wood pallet disposal + $709M damaged modules + $38.8M solar module disposal
= $1.51B in total single-use packaging costs
Claim: The US solar industry spent more than $420M on packaging CAPEX in 2023. When adding hidden fees like breakage and disposal fees, single use packaging cost the US solar industry more than $1B. Scaled globally, that’s $5.7B in CAPEX alone.
Baseline Numbers:
32.4 GW (32,400 MW) of new capacity installed in the US in 2023 (SEIA)
444 GW of solar installed in 2023 globally (PV Magazine)
400 W-450 W average wattage per solar module (Energy Sage)
30 modules per pallet (Sinovoltaics Group)
$200 average cost per solar module ($.50/watt)
$100 average wood pallet/packaging cost
.86 truckloads per MW of BOS components (i.e. harnesses, ATI material, Cab, LBDS, etc.)
28 stacks of 48x45 pallets per truckload (56 stacked 2 high) (Nelson)
13 stacks of 48x90 pallets per truckload (26 stacked 2 high)
75 pallets per dumpster load
$1500 per dumpster ($200) plus transit to landfill ($1300)
3% average module breakage rate prior to installation
$11 for disposal/recycling costs (average of $2 in disposal fees or $20 in recycling fees per solar module)
The Math:
1 MW / 400W average per solar module = 2500 modules per megawatt
2500 modules / 30 modules per pallet = 83 pallets per megagatt
32,400 MW x 2500 modules per mw = 81M solar modules
32,400 MW x 83 pallets per megawatt = 2.7M pallets for solar modules
2.7M pallets / 26 per truckload = 103,846 truckloads of solar modules
32,400 MW x .86 truckloads = 27,869 truckloads of BOS components
27,869 truckloads x 56 pallets = 1.5M pallets for BOS components
2.7M solar panel pallets + 1.5M BOS component pallets = 4.2M pallets
4.2M pallets x $100 per wood pallet/packaging = $420M wood pallet CAPEX (domestic)
444 GW global installations / 32.4GW domestic installations = Global market is 13.7 x larger than domestic
13.7 x $420M domestic CAPEX = $5.7B in Global Packaging CAPEX
4.2M pallets / 75 per dumpster = 56,000 truckloads of wood pallet waste
56,000 truckloads x $1,500 per load to landfill = $84M wood pallet disposal costs
3% breakage x 81M solar panels = 2.43M broken solar modules
2.43M broken modules x $200 per module = $486M damaged modules
$11 disposal/recycling fees x 2.43 broken modules = $26.7M in broken module disposal/recycling fees
$420M wood pallets + $84M wood pallet disposal + $486M damaged modules + $26.7M solar module disposal = $1B in total single-use packaging costs
Claim: Globally, the Solar Industry spent an $5.7B in packaging CAPEX in 2023.
Baseline Numbers:
32.4 GW (32,400 MW) of new capacity installed in the US in 2023 (SEIA)
444 GW of solar installed in 2023 globally (PV Magazine)
400 W-450 W average wattage per solar module (Energy Sage)
30 modules per pallet (Sinovoltaics Group)
$200 average cost per solar module ($.50/watt)
$100 average wood pallet/packaging cost
.86 truckloads per MW of BOS components (i.e. harnesses, ATI material, Cab, LBDS, etc.)
28 stacks of 48x45 pallets per truckload (56 stacked 2 high) (Nelson)
13 stacks of 48x90 pallets per truckload (26 stacked 2 high)
75 pallets per dumpster load
$1500 per dumpster ($200) plus transit to landfill ($1300)
3% average module breakage rate prior to installation
$11 for disposal/recycling costs (average of $2 in disposal fees or $20 in recycling fees per solar module)
The Math:
444 GW global installations / 32.2 GW domestic installations = Global solar market is 13.7x larger than the US market.
$420M spent on 4.2M wood pallets (domestic) x 13.7 (global increase) = $5.7B in global packaging CAPEX
58,000 truckloads of wood pallet waste cost $84M in disposal/transit fees x 13.7 = $1.1B in disposal/transit fees
3% solar panel breakage rate as a result of wood pallet use led to 2.43M broken panels costing $486M x 13.7 = $6.7B in damaged product
$26.7M in broken panel disposal/recycling fees x 13.7 = $366M in panel disposal fees
Claim: In 2023 alone, the Global Solar Industry used nearly 33 million pallets, which equates to 2.6 billion pounds of wood waste. At an average of 3% breakage prior to installation, nearly 30 million solar modules were broken in a single year.
Baseline Numbers:
444 GW of solar installed in 2023 globally (PV Magazine)
400 W-500 W average wattage per solar module (source)
30 modules per pallet (Sinovoltaics Group)
80 lb average weight per 48” x 90” pallet (freightquote.com)
Based on the 40 lb average weight of a standard 48”x45” pallet4 standard pallets per log, 2 logs per tree = 8 standard pallets per tree (palletconsultants.com)
2-7% modules broken in transit
The Math:
444 GW / 450 W = 987,000,000 solar modules installed globally in 2023
59,000,000 solar modules / 30 panels per pallet = 32,900,000 pallets used by the global solar industry
32,900,000 pallets x 80 lb = 2,632,000,000 pounds of wood pallet waste
32,900,000 pallets / 8 = 2,987,500 trees
987,000,000 solar modules x 3% breakage = 29,620,000 broken solar modules each year
Claim: The solar industry creates 6,640 pounds of wood waste per megawatt installed.
Baseline Numbers:
400 W-450 W average wattage per solar module (Energy Sage)
30 modules per pallet (Sinovoltaics Group)
80 lb average weight per 48” x 90” pallet (freightquote.com)
Based on the 40 lb average weight of a standard 48”x45” pallet.
The Math:
1 MW / 400W average per module = 2500 modules per megawatt
2500 modules / 30 modules per pallet = 83 pallets per megagatt
83 pallets x 80 pounds average pallet = 6,640 pounds per megawatt
Claim: In 2021 alone, the United States Solar Industry used nearly 2 million pallets, which equates to 157 million pounds of wood waste. Globally, 14 million pallets were used for solar modules, equalling 1.1 billion pounds of wood waste.
Baseline Numbers:
23.6 GW of solar installed in 2021 in the United Staes (SEIA)
168 GW of solar installed in 2021 globally (source)
400 W-500 W average wattage per solar module (source)
30 modules per pallet (Sinovoltaics Group)
80 lb average weight per 48” x 90” pallet (freightquote.com)
Based on the 40 lb average weight of a standard 48”x45” pallet4 standard pallets per log, 2 logs per tree = 8 standard pallets per tree (palletconsultants.com)
2-7% modules broken in transit
The Math:
23.6 GW / 400 W = 59,000,000 solar modules installed in 2021 in the United States
59,000,000 solar modules / 30 panels per pallet = 1,966,667 pallets used by the domestic solar industry
1,966,667 pallets x 80 lb = 157,333,360 pounds of wood pallet waste
1,966,667 pallets / 8 = 245,833 trees
168 GW / 400 W = 420,000,000 solar modules installed in 2021 globally
420,000,000 solar modules / 30 modules per pallet = 14,000,000 pallets used by the global solar industry
14,000,000 pallets x 80 lb = 1,120,000,000 pounds of wood pallet waste
14,000,000 pallets / 8 = 1,750,000 trees
Claim: In 2020 alone, the United States Solar Industry used 1,580,000 pallets, which equated to 63,210,000 pounds of wood waste and 198,000 trees.
Baseline Numbers:
19.2 GW of solar installed in 2020 in the United Staes (SEIA)
138.2 GW of solar installed in 2020 globally (source)
400 W-500 W average wattage per solar module (Energy Sage)
30 modules per pallet (Sinovoltaics Group)
40 lb average weight per 48” x 48” standard pallet (freightquote.com)
Note that a pallet for solar modules would be closer to 80lb4 standard pallets per log, 2 logs per tree = 8 standard pallets per tree (palletconsultants.com)
The Math:
19 GW / 400 W = 47,500,000 solar modules installed in 2020 in the United States
47,500,000 solar modules / 30 panels per pallet = 1,583,333 pallets used by the domestic solar industry
1,583,333 pallets x 40 lbs = 63,333,333 pounds of wood pallet waste
1,583,333 pallets / 8 = 197,917 trees
138.2 GW / 450 W = 307,111,111 solar modules installed in 2020 globally
307,111,111 solar modules / 30 modules per pallet = 10,237,000 pallets used by the global solar industry
Claim: 78 million metric tons of solar panels will reach end-of-life by 2050—enough to cover more than 1,000,000 American football fields.
Baseline Numbers:
78 Million metric tons of solar panels could reach end of life by 2050 (Harvard Business Review)
20 kg average solar panel weight
1.6 m x 0.9 m average solar panel size
6,000 square meters average size of an American football field
The Math:
Weight in kilograms: 78,000,000 metric tons x 1000 = 78,000,000,000 kg
Number of Solar Panels: 78,000,000,000 kg/20 kg = 3,900,000,000 solar panels
Area covered: 3,900,000,000 * (1.6 m * 0.9 m) = 7,020,000,000 square meters of solar panels
Number of football fields: 7,020,000,000 sq m / 6,000 sq m = 1,170,000 football fields (approximately)
Claim: Each broken solar module costs a business $800.
Baseline Numbers:
$20-30 recycling fee per module (LA Times)
$200 replacement cost per module
$500 LTL freight to replace the module
$75 labor to ship new module (warehouse + admin)