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Across published field studies reviewed by NREL, about how much output do PV modules typically lose per year?

The median is about 0.5% per year.

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  1. About 5% per year
  2. About 0.05% per year
  3. About 0.5% per year ✔

Why: NREL reviewed many published degradation studies and found a median of 0.5% per year and a mean of 0.8%. So a panel typically keeps most of its output for decades.

Huh, didn't know that: NREL's review pulled together nearly 2,000 degradation rates measured over 40 years.

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References

Answer: About 0.5% per year. NREL reviewed many published degradation studies and found a median of 0.5% per year and a mean of 0.8%. So a panel typically keeps most of its output for decades.

  1. NREL: Photovoltaic Degradation Rates, An Analytical Review (Jordan and Kurtz) docs.nlr.gov/docs/fy12osti/51664.pdf
    a mean of 0.8%/year and a median of 0.5%/year
    Checked 2026-10-10.

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