Solarge, a Dutch developer and manufacturer of lightweight and low-carbon footprint solar panels, is seeking investments and partnerships to upgrade its production capacity and enable its expansion to international markets, particularly the US.
Founded in 2018, Solarge aims to promote a sustainable energy transition by bringing sustainable, circular solar panels to the market. These composite solar panels are lightweight, do not contain antimony and PFAS, the latter known as ‘forever chemicals’, and can be made from recycled plastic. According to Solarge, it has made various innovations in the construction and application of solar panels, using fiber-reinforced polymers and materials specially developed by SABIC, a global leader in the plastics industry. Some of these applications include floating solar farms, custom-made solar roofs, and building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) solutions.
Solarge Co-Founder and CEO Jan Vesseur says the company is preparing for a Series B funding round in the coming months, as it seeks to grow the production capacity of its Dutch factory to 250 MW. It is also seeking investors and partners to join it in expanding to a 1 GW facility in the Netherlands and the US.
Earlier this year, Solarge raised a total of €3 million from impact funds Phase2.earth and Orchard Participations, as well as existing investors (including Daan van der Vorm and Sytse Bouwer). The investment will be used to augment Solarge’s production facility located in Weert, ensuring competitive production of solar panels within the Netherlands and the European Union.
Solarge, SABIC, and Belgian energy company ENGIE joined forces in May for a project to build a 2.4 MW solar installation at the SABIC site in Genk, Belgium. According to Solarge, this is the largest installation to date, featuring around 4,700 of its innovative lightweight solar panels, producing an average of 2,400 MWh of green and local electricity per year. This eliminates around 800 tons of CO2 annually. The panels underwent extensive testing by ENGIE Laborelec, the ENGIE Group’s research arm. ENGIE is also responsible for the installation, which will begin this summer, as well as the financing and maintenance of the panels.
Late last year, Solarge entered a strategic partnership with the Infrastructure Corporation of Nigeria (InfraCorp) and the African Green Infrastructure Investment Bank. The partnership includes the construction of a solar panel manufacturing facility in Nigeria, which will contribute to the country’s industrialization and decarbonization efforts, as well as help solve its persistent power shortage issues.
“Part of our expansion and partnership strategy is to work with third parties to license our lightweight, low-CO2 footprint solar panel technology. We believe that it’s better to grow alongside partners than by ourselves, spreading the benefits of innovation in solar energy generation to more communities and accelerating the energy transition.”
