[First in Japan] Hamada Co., Ltd. Acquires First Certification under Ministry of the Environment's "Resource Recycling Business Advancement Law"
Hamada Co., Ltd. has obtained Japan's first certification under the Ministry of the Environment's "Resource Recycling Business Advancement Law." This certification promotes "horizontal recycling" of used solar panel cover glass back into flat glass raw material, marking a significant step towards a circular economy.
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- 📰 Published: May 7, 2026 at 22:49
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Hamada Co., Ltd. (Head office: Takatsuki City, Osaka Prefecture; Representative Director: Tokusuke Hamada; hereinafter referred to as "the Company") announced today, April 30, 2026, that it has acquired Japan's first certification under the national "Resource Recycling Business Advancement Law," a new system aimed at realizing a resource-circulating society. This certification represents a crucial step towards achieving a circular economy by promoting the shift from conventional landfill disposal to "horizontal recycling," where cover glass from used solar panels, which are expected to be mass-discharged in the future, is reused as raw material for flat glass.
*For a list of certified companies, please refer to the following:
Ministry of the Environment HP: Certification status of the Resource Recycling Business Advancement Law
1. Massive Disposal of Solar Panels and Landfill Issues
Since the introduction of the Feed-in Tariff (FIT) system in 2012, the installation of solar power generation facilities has rapidly progressed in Japan. Meanwhile, a massive disposal of solar panels reaching their service life is anticipated to become a serious issue in the future.
In conventional solar panel processing, after recovering some materials such as aluminum frames, the majority, including the cover glass which accounts for over 60% of the panel's weight, was often sent to landfills.
The establishment of a mechanism to circulate glass as raw material again, rather than merely crushing and landfilling, has become a critical challenge for future resource circulation.
2. Unique Water Jet Method Enables Horizontal Recycling
To address this challenge, the Company has developed its unique water jet method.
Used solar panels are composite materials where multiple components such as glass, cells, encapsulants (EVA, etc.), and backsheets are firmly integrated. Among these, the resin components remaining on the glass surface pose a significant barrier to reusing cover glass as raw material for flat glass.
With only primary separation, which has been performed until now, it was difficult to sufficiently remove these residual resins, posing a problem in meeting the quality standards required by glass manufacturers.
Therefore, the Company introduced the water jet method, focusing on surface treatment technology, as a secondary process after hot knife separation. Through repeated optimization of water pressure conditions, a process has been established to remove residual resins with high precision without damaging the glass.
This technology enables "Glass to Glass" horizontal recycling, where the cover glass of solar panels is reused as raw material for flat glass, unlike conventional low-grade utilization (downcycling).
*Solar Panel Resource Circulation Process Flow developed by the Company
*Bottom: Before processing, Middle: After hot knife processing, Top: After water jet processing
*Bottom: After hot knife processing, Top: After water jet processing
3. Implementable Resource Circulation Model Achieved Through "Dynamic and Static Linkage"
The Company's efforts are not limited to its own technological development.
Through continuous dialogue with glass manufacturers who are keen on utilizing glass cullet derived from solar panels, the Company has refined its process while considering the required quality standards.
As a result, the recycled glass produced by the Company has received high acclaim from major glass manufacturers, who deem it "practically usable as raw material." This proves that the technology is not merely at a lab level but is "socially implementable" with both practicality and economic viability.
Furthermore, unlike conventional supply chains that rely on imported raw materials, this material can suppress GHG emissions during transportation and melting processes, aligning with manufacturers' decarbonization strategies. This has enabled the establishment of a "socially implementable resource circulation system" that strongly connects everything from emission sources to collection, processing, recycling, and finally to manufacturers as end-users.
4. Future Outlook
As the first certified company, Hamada Co., Ltd. will nurture solar panel recycling not as a one-off initiative but as a social infrastructure supporting the spread of renewable energy in Japan.
Going forward, the Company will expand processing capacity, develop collection networks, further strengthen dynamic and static linkages, and widely share its accumulated knowledge with the industry. The aim is to accelerate the social implementation of horizontal recycling for solar panels and lead the transition from waste treatment to resource circulation, making "Glass to Glass" for solar panel-derived glass a new standard in Japan.
*For a list of certified companies, please refer to the following:
Ministry of the Environment HP: Certification status of the Resource Recycling Business Advancement Law
1. Massive Disposal of Solar Panels and Landfill Issues
Since the introduction of the Feed-in Tariff (FIT) system in 2012, the installation of solar power generation facilities has rapidly progressed in Japan. Meanwhile, a massive disposal of solar panels reaching their service life is anticipated to become a serious issue in the future.
In conventional solar panel processing, after recovering some materials such as aluminum frames, the majority, including the cover glass which accounts for over 60% of the panel's weight, was often sent to landfills.
The establishment of a mechanism to circulate glass as raw material again, rather than merely crushing and landfilling, has become a critical challenge for future resource circulation.
2. Unique Water Jet Method Enables Horizontal Recycling
To address this challenge, the Company has developed its unique water jet method.
Used solar panels are composite materials where multiple components such as glass, cells, encapsulants (EVA, etc.), and backsheets are firmly integrated. Among these, the resin components remaining on the glass surface pose a significant barrier to reusing cover glass as raw material for flat glass.
With only primary separation, which has been performed until now, it was difficult to sufficiently remove these residual resins, posing a problem in meeting the quality standards required by glass manufacturers.
Therefore, the Company introduced the water jet method, focusing on surface treatment technology, as a secondary process after hot knife separation. Through repeated optimization of water pressure conditions, a process has been established to remove residual resins with high precision without damaging the glass.
This technology enables "Glass to Glass" horizontal recycling, where the cover glass of solar panels is reused as raw material for flat glass, unlike conventional low-grade utilization (downcycling).
*Solar Panel Resource Circulation Process Flow developed by the Company
*Bottom: Before processing, Middle: After hot knife processing, Top: After water jet processing
*Bottom: After hot knife processing, Top: After water jet processing
3. Implementable Resource Circulation Model Achieved Through "Dynamic and Static Linkage"
The Company's efforts are not limited to its own technological development.
Through continuous dialogue with glass manufacturers who are keen on utilizing glass cullet derived from solar panels, the Company has refined its process while considering the required quality standards.
As a result, the recycled glass produced by the Company has received high acclaim from major glass manufacturers, who deem it "practically usable as raw material." This proves that the technology is not merely at a lab level but is "socially implementable" with both practicality and economic viability.
Furthermore, unlike conventional supply chains that rely on imported raw materials, this material can suppress GHG emissions during transportation and melting processes, aligning with manufacturers' decarbonization strategies. This has enabled the establishment of a "socially implementable resource circulation system" that strongly connects everything from emission sources to collection, processing, recycling, and finally to manufacturers as end-users.
4. Future Outlook
As the first certified company, Hamada Co., Ltd. will nurture solar panel recycling not as a one-off initiative but as a social infrastructure supporting the spread of renewable energy in Japan.
Going forward, the Company will expand processing capacity, develop collection networks, further strengthen dynamic and static linkages, and widely share its accumulated knowledge with the industry. The aim is to accelerate the social implementation of horizontal recycling for solar panels and lead the transition from waste treatment to resource circulation, making "Glass to Glass" for solar panel-derived glass a new standard in Japan.