5B’s factory-made solar arrays speed up installation
(Bloomberg) — An Australian renewable startup has raised A$20 million ($13.7 million) from the venture arm of energy giant BP Plc to further develop its technology to deploy solar power in a matter of minutes.
The firm, 5B Holdings Pty Ld., seeks to expand the international use of its product, an accordion-like structure of solar panels that can be opened on site quickly by a handful of people.
“The product itself is very simple,” Chris McGrath, 5B’s co-founder and chief executive officer, said in an interview. “Connect some solar panels with some hinges, and then roll it out.”
Governments and companies across the globe are looking to expand their use of clean energy to combat climate change, and solar farms are already one of the quickest ways to add new power capacity. In Europe, which is in the midst of an energy crisis as Russia curbs natural gas supplies, electric grids are strained by surging demand.By teaming up with BP, the Australian startup has both an investor and potential customer. The energy giant has a target to develop 50,000 megawatts of renewable capacity by the end of the decade, with much of that coming from solar. “5B’s innovative solar technology can deliver low-cost power generation at speed, helping to meet rising electricity demand,” said Johnathan Stone, principal at BP Ventures. So far, 5B has installed about 60 megawatts of solar capacity globally, including in Europe, the Americas and Asia. Next year that will jump to more than 200 megawatts installed and more than 1,000 megawatts of sales, according to McGrath. One potential application for the technology could be at energy-intensive mining sites that are far from power grids and currently rely on polluting diesel generators. The 5B product could be used for a few years and then relocated to a new site, he said.
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