NOVELTY - The apparatus comprises a wafer holding device (1) on which a string of solar cell wafers are positioned on respective wafer support positions. A wire laying mechanism includes: a wire feed gripper (GZ) and a wire transport gripper (GT) that is movable relative to the wire feed gripper in a string direction; a wire holding gripper for gripping and holding the contact wires behind the wafer holding position; and a wire cutter (2). The wire feed gripper holds the contact wires over the wire transport gripper. A wire laying control unit (8) controls the operation of the wire laying mechanism.    USE - The apparatus is useful for mounting serially interconnected solar cell contact wires on top and bottom surfaces of adjacent solar cell wafers to form solar cell strings (claimed).    ADVANTAGE - The apparatus enables improved attachment of serially interconnected solar cell contact wires on top and bottom surfaces of adjacent solar cell wafers.    DETAILED DESCRIPTION - The apparatus comprises a wafer holding device (1) on which a string of solar cell wafers are positioned on respective wafer support positions. A wire laying mechanism includes: a wire feed gripper (GZ) and a wire transport gripper (GT) that is movable relative to the wire feed gripper in a string direction, where the wire feed gripper and the wire transport gripper are arranged above the wafer holding device; a wire holding gripper for gripping and holding the contact wires behind the wafer holding position; and a wire cutter (2). The wire feed gripper holds the contact wires over the wire transport gripper. A wire laying control unit (8) controls the operation of the wire laying mechanism, where: the wire transport gripper advances the contact wires in the string direction to above the wafer holding position of the rear solar cell wafer and an upper face of the front solar cell wafer after the positioning of the front solar cell wafer and before the positioning the rear solar cell wafer; the wire holding gripper grips and holds the contact wires behind the wafer holding position of the rear solar cell wafer; and the wire cutter cuts the contact wires behind the wire holding gripper. A wire laying control medium transfers the contact wires from a wire clamping position of the wire feed gripper into a wire release position of the wire feed gripper. The wire cutter is arranged between the wire feed gripper and the wire holding gripper. The wire laying-control unit transfers the contact wires from the wire release position into the wire clamping position of the wire feed gripper before cutting the contact wires. The wire cutter includes a first feed-side cutting plate in a plane perpendicular to the string direction and parallel to a second cutting plate, where two wire passage openings are provided in the cutting plates, respectively. The wire laying mechanism comprises a wire bender for bending the contact wires over the wafer holding position of the rear solar wafer and over the top of the front solar cell wafer. An INDEPENDENT CLAIM is included for a method for mounting serially interconnected solar cells contact wires in a string direction.    DESCRIPTION OF DRAWING(S) - The figure shows a schematic side view of an apparatus for mounting serially interconnected solar cell contact wires.    Wafer holding device (1)    Wire cutter (2)    Wire laying control unit (8)    Wire transport gripper (GT)    Wire feed gripper. (GZ)