With effect from October 2017 the IEC FDIS 62930 is available as the new international certification basis. The norm is in final draft for international standard status (FDIS). The known EN 50618, in use since December 2014, will still be applicable, yet manufacturers with worldwide distribution may wish to switch to the new international norm.
Please note: TÜV Rheinland’s well established 2PfG 1169 and 2PfG 1990 have been withdrawn October 27th, 2017. PV cables with only these certificates can no longer be installed in PV systems. The international safety qualification standard for PV modules – IEC 61730 requires PV cables on PV modules to be conform to EN 50618. In consequence, all existing certificates have to be transferred to one of the valid norms (EN 50618 or IEC FDIS 62930).
Tender documents e.g. for large scale PV installations will have to be adapted, too, and industry actors should be aware that cables need to be certified according to EN 50618 , IEC FDIS 62930 when evaluating tenders. For EPCs it is important to check their suppliers products conformity to valid PV standards as these set requirements exceeding e.g. general low voltage cables.
TÜV Rheinland’s services
As always, TÜV Rheinland has all services necessary at your disposal:
- testing according to the valid standards as well as confirming that the cables also comply with the previously applicable standards on the final certificate
- transfer of existing certificates
- guiding you through the new IEC norm
- pre-shipment inspections to check purchased products compliance
Basically, the new IEC FDIS 62930 is based upon the previous EN 50618 and differs only in some respects. It seems worth mentioning that both standards are dedicated PV norms that address all cable manufacturers who supply their products to the downstream PV industry. Time after time, our experts come across PV plants that have been built using common, non-PV cables. Therefore, TÜV Rheinland offers a new service – the pre-shipment inspection of PV cables. This should be of special interest to EPCs who want to pursue a “no surprises” policy.
For details and further information, please contact our experts:
