(Yicai Global) Nov. 8 -- China has completed construction of its first building using copper indium gallium selenide integrated photovoltaics in Guangdong province.

State-owned mining and energy firm China Energy Investment holds the rights to the core technologies used by the building to generate solar power, a company source told Yicai Global.

The exterior walls of the 5,500 square meter building, located in Huizhou city, are covered with 2,037 photovoltaic panels with an annual generating capacity of 123 million kilowatt-hours, enough to satisfy 10 percent of the tower's electricity demands.

CIGS photovoltaic cells are hailed as the next-generation of thin-film solar cells the world over, he added, saying constructing buildings that can generate their own electricity can free up land used for power stations and energy storage.

Compared with typical crystalline silicon cells, CIGS components feature low power attenuation and a long lifecycle, and can still perform well in low light. They also have a better conversation rate and need less energy and fewer materials to make, the source said.

"The world record for CIGS solar conversion is 22.9 percent," he continued. "There is still a lot of space for the technology to mature and increase efficiency and reduce costs further when compared with traditional photovoltaic cells."

China Energy Investment plans to focus on CIGS building-integrated photovoltaics as part of a strategic transformation to better develop fusion technologies, high-end manufacturing, high-performance component production, power station applications and BIPV-related construction, the source added.

Editor: James Boynton