Australian modular photo voltaic producer 5B has secured a $13.7 million (AUD 20 million) funding from the enterprise capital arm of British vitality large bp, which can permit it to speed up the event of its preassembled, relocatable modular photo voltaic know-how.
from Australia’s pv journal
Australian modular photo voltaic array producer 5B has introduced the profitable completion of a $37.4 million Sequence B funding spherical that may drive growth of the corporate’s prefabricated and quickly deployable Maverick photo voltaic system.
The funding spherical attracted help from the enterprise arm of worldwide oil and fuel large bp and was partnered by current buyers AES Corp. and Sydney-headquartered funding administration agency Artesian Enterprise Capital.
Sydney-based 5B mentioned the capital elevating will help the event of its redeployable, modular, prefabricated Maverick photo voltaic system, a PV array the place modules are pre-assembled into concrete blocks that may exchange typical mounting buildings.
Chris McGrath, co-founder and CEO of 5B, mentioned the help from bp is “a strong validation” of the corporate’s know-how and can permit it to fast-track its worldwide growth technique, which incorporates of plans to construct a producing and meeting hub in North America.
“The partnership with bp companies and the broader bp companies gives us a wealth of worldwide business and operational experience,” he mentioned. “This presents an awesome alternative to deploy our 5B Maverick know-how in several markets all over the world.”
The corporate’s Maverick system is a ground-mounted photo voltaic array of as much as 90 PV panels mounted on specifically designed frames that may be rapidly deployed and put in. The modules are oriented in a live performance form at a 10-degree tilt and electrically configured, which permits quick set up. Earlier this yr, the corporate set a brand new velocity file for photo voltaic deployment with 1.1 MW deployed in someday by a crew of 10 individuals at AES’ Andes Photo voltaic II B photo voltaic farm within the Atacama Desert in Chile.
5B mentioned it has greater than 60 MW of its Maverick answer deployed in additional than 100 places and plans to speed up the roll out of its know-how.
The corporate has already signed agreements with the builders of a number of main tasks, together with the large 20 GW Australia-Asia PowerLink being constructed by Solar Cable within the Northern Territory, however the bp affiliation is anticipated to offer much more alternatives. .
Bp Ventures Principal Johnathan Stone, who will be a part of 5B’s board of administrators, mentioned the funding arm will now work with 5B to discover the very best alternatives to collaborate on the deployment of Maverick’s know-how in the way forward for bp and clear vitality. three way partnership Lightsource bp tasks.
“5B’s progressive photo voltaic know-how can present reasonably priced energy era at velocity, which can assist meet growing electrical energy demand,” mentioned Stone. “This deal is a singular instance of bp investing in a enterprise that may help our renewable vitality transition progress engine. And one other strand of our multi-energy vector nation technique that may help Australia’s vitality decarbonization.
Lightsource bp, which is half-owned by UK-based photo voltaic developer Lightsource Renewable Vitality, introduced in 2021 that it plans to succeed in 25 GW of photo voltaic challenge capability by 2025 and has chosen Australia as one of many primary its market. Lightsource bp already has 5 tasks working or below building throughout the Australian states of New South Wales, Queensland, and Victoria.
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