Reverse Logistics Network Design for Waste Solar PV Panels in Saudi Arabia

Solar PV panels are widely used solar energy harnessing technologies globally. However, after the end-of-life (EoL), a tremendous amount of waste will be generated in many countries, forcing policymakers to give special attention to managing the waste stream. Recovering the stream and subsequent process falls under the category of reverse logistics (RL), which plans for waste allocation to dedicated recycling facilities. Saudi Arabia is heavily investing in installing large-scale solar PV plants, and as of 2022, 390 MW of solar PV generation capacity has been installed. This paper aims to develop an RL network design for future Saudi Arabian solar PV waste that will be generated in the year 2043 using a mixed-integer programming (MIP) optimization model to minimize the total cost of the network. A 24 (solar plant) × 24 (recycling center) distance matrix has been developed as model input. In addition, the waste generation amount from individual solar PV plants has been estimated using the Weibull-distribution-based forecasting technique. Results of the study showed that the total optimized cost of the network will be around Saudi Riyals (SAR) 1.8 billion, including SAR 7.1 million in transportation costs, SAR 910 million for the recycling process, and a capital investment cost of SAR 922 million. It is also estimated that from the transportation process, total CO2 emission will be around 12 million kg. Based on the model, it is also found that the required number of recycling centers will be needed for Eastern Province (4 units), Al-Jouf Province (3 units), Makkah Province (6 units), Medina Province (3 units), Riyad Province (5 units), Al Qassim Province (2 units) and Northern Border Province (1 unit), each with a capacity of 32000tons/year. This paper will also help policymakers and waste management authorities make preliminary decisions on financial and physical resource allocation.