ARTsolar vs Solar Frontier - solar panel manufacturer comparison
Both brands are closely matched on catalog size, efficiency and bifacial share - the choice comes down to local availability, price and specific model features.
Both catalogues are read from the manufacturers' own datasheets. A brand is not scored against the market here, only against the other brand on this page.
The two companies
Solar Frontier is a leading CIS thin-film solar energy company specializing in the development and manufacturing of CIS (Copper-Indium-Selenium) thin-film solar modules. The company is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, and is a fully owned subsidiary of Showa Shell Sekiyu, now part of Idemitsu Kosan Group. Solar...
- Founded
- 2006
- Headquarters
- Tokyo, Japan
- Annual capacity
- 1 GW/year
- Employees
- 1,500
Catalogue against catalogue
An average over a catalogue describes the range a manufacturer publishes, not the module you would buy. A brand with two flagship panels and eighty older ones averages worse than one that has retired its back catalogue.
What each of them builds
Written summary
Now I have enough research to write the comparison.
ARTsolar, founded in 2010 and headquartered in South Africa, is the country's only 100% locally owned solar panel manufacturer, carving out a distinct position in the African market with internationally certified products. It is not currently classified as Tier 1 bankable under BloombergNEF criteria. Solar Frontier, founded in 2006 in Japan, built its global reputation on proprietary CIS (copper indium selenium) thin-film technology and once operated a flagship factory with close to 1 GW of annual production capacity. In mid-2022, however, it ceased all in-house panel manufacturing and pivoted to becoming a systems integrator that procures OEM crystalline silicon modules. With roughly 1,500 employees, Solar Frontier retains a larger headcount and deeper institutional history, but as an active panel supplier its manufacturing footprint is now effectively zero.
ARTsolar's current catalogue centres on a single 600 Wp TOPCon N-type module rated at 23.21% efficiency and backed by a 30-year linear power output warranty. A temperature coefficient of -0.31%/C is competitive and means the panel retains relatively more output under heat stress - a meaningful advantage in South Africa's high-irradiance conditions. No bifacial variants are offered. This profile positions ARTsolar well for commercial rooftop and smaller utility-adjacent ground-mount buyers who value locally manufactured, high-efficiency silicon, and it carries added local-content value for projects subject to domestic procurement requirements. Solar Frontier, by contrast, lists zero active panel products in its current portfolio. Its catalogue was effectively closed when CIS production ended in 2022, and any units still in circulation are legacy stock rather than current commercial offerings.
For a buyer evaluating these two brands in 2025, ARTsolar is the only practical choice. Its 600 Wp, 23.21%-efficient TOPCon module is a live product available through South African distribution channels with a 30-year warranty. Solar Frontier no longer competes as a module manufacturer in any meaningful sense, and unless a buyer specifically needs CIS thin-film replacement stock for a legacy system compatibility project, it should not appear on an active shortlist.
Generated by Claude Sonnet · 2026-05-11
Other brand comparisons
Comparisons are computed from manufacturer datasheets held in the ComparePV database and may not reflect a brand's complete current lineup. Nothing on this page is paid placement.