SoloPower raises $30 million in Series B Financing to develop high efficiency, low cost solar cells
Milpitas, CA, July 12, 2007
Source: SoloPower press release
http://www.solopower.com/about/news/series_b_financing.html
SoloPower, an innovator of thin-film solar photovoltaic cells and modules, today announced the completion of its Series B financing which raised $30 million. The deal was led by new investor, Convexa Capital and supported by Scatec AS and Spencer Energy AS. Existing investors, Crosslink Capital, Firsthand Capital Management and Musea Ventures also joined the round. The new funds will support the company’s efforts to further develop, manufacture and commercialize a new generation of high-efficiency, low-cost solar cells and modules.
SoloPower’s production technology offers unique advantages over alternative solar cell manufacturing approaches. The company’s devices are fabricated on copper-indium-gallium-selenide (CIGS) materials using a proprietary electrochemical process that is significantly more cost effective than comparative CIGS and Silicon-based approaches. The solar cell is built on a thin flexible foil substrate that is optimized for maximum efficiency. The advantages of SoloPower’s novel process include lower equipment costs, reduced processing times and increased material utilization.
Citing SoloPower’s technology differentiators and substantial market potential as important factors in his company’s investment decision, Convexa Capital’s managing partner, Bjorge Gretland also noted, “SoloPower’s manufacturing process is aimed at addressing the two chief success criteria in today’s solar energy market: cost and efficiency. These success criteria are not only key to an individual producer’s market share; they are also pivotal to growing the overall solar energy market by making it more competitive than traditional energy sources.”
The new investors comprise a powerhouse team of alternative energy entities. Together, they bring significant business and technology resources to SoloPower. Convexa Capital is a leading Norwegian venture capital firm with portfolio companies in the renewable energy and other technology sectors. Spencer Energy AS is a company controlled by Arne Blystad, chairman of Songa Drilling. Scatec AS—led by solar pioneer, Alf Bjorseth—serves as the nucleus for the development of new business ideas within the areas of renewable energy and environmentally friendly ‘advanced materials’. Dr. Bjorseth earned his reputation as a solar expert for his skilful leadership of the REC Group—the world’s largest producer of silicon materials for photovoltaic applications and multicrystalline wafers, as well as a significant producer of cells and modules. Under Bjorseth’s management, the REC group became the only fully integrated solar energy company in the world, with production in all parts of the value chain—from raw materials to complete solar modules. “Our priority was to attract an elite group of alternative energy investors who could complement our existing investor line-up and contribute in a meaningful way to our company’s growth,” said SoloPower’s co-founder and CEO, Homayoun Talieh. “We’re extremely proud that these noted alternative energy advocates selected SoloPower as a key investment opportunity. Not only do we stand to gain from their financial support; we will also benefit from their experience of building multi-billion-dollar companies in this sector.”
In a separate development, SoloPower was recently awarded a prestigious grant of $2.37 million by the United States Department of Energy (DoE). SoloPower joined a select number of companies whose technology efforts were flagged as highly promising contributors to the DoE’s broad goal of lowering the cost, increasing the availability and improving the efficiency of solar products.
Commenting on the DoE award, SoloPower’s co-founder, executive VP and CTO, Bulent Basol, Ph.D., noted, “SoloPower was selected by the government based on our demonstration of a scalable, affordable manufacturing process that promises significant benefits over existing technologies. Even among the grant winners, our process stands out as uniquely innovative, due to an electroplating process that incorporates CIGS materials.”