Solar co. Solyndra shines with $220M
Solar installation maker Solyndra has every reason to celebrate the new year, raising $219.2 million in fifth-round funding from a flock of 23 investors. This is the second largest investment received by any U.S. cleantech company in the last year, coming in behind the $300 million bagged by competitor Nanosolar. The amount breaks down into $96.6 million in working capital and $122.2 million in convertible promissory notes.
The Fremont, Calif. company has not disclosed its plans… Continue Reading
Innovalight rakes in $5M for solar cell ink
Investors Leader Ventures and Silicon Valley Bank have shined on solar cell company Innovalight, providing $5 million in new financing toward the development of silicon solar modules so small they can be painted onto surfaces like ink.
The Sunnyvale, Calif. company uses liquid processing of silicon to produce nanosize solar prarticles that are not only more efficient than crystalline wafers, but also much cheaper to make than regular solar panels. It received $28 million last year… Continue Reading
SoloPower is latest thin film company with a big raise, taking $200M for a factory
Yet another thin film manufacturer has picked up a massive funding raise. SoloPower, based in Milpitas, Calif., has taken almost $200 million to expand its manufacturing capacity, according to this morning’s VentureWire.
Like Miasole, Nanosolar and several others, SoloPower makes thin film CIGS panels, meaning they rely on a specific chemical to convert sunlight to electricity. The funding will go toward a 100 megawatt per year facility also based in the state.
Although the amounts being pushed… Continue Reading
Solopower raises $30M more
SoloPower, the Milpitas, Calif., company building a new solar power technology based on “electroplating,” which saves costs by placing expensive carbon material only in areas high voltage potential, has raised $30 million in venture backing.
We reported the round before, but at the time the amount was unknown.
PE Wire confirms that the maker of of thin-film photovoltaics has raised $30 million with Convexa Capital of Norway leading the deal, joined by Crosslink Capital and Firsthand Capital… Continue Reading
Greentech notes: SoloPower, MWOE, SNTech
Here’s a roundup of the latest green technology developments.
SoloPower announces investors — The Milpitas, Calif. make of photovoltaic solar cells and modules ,said it has $30 million more in a second round of capital. That adds to its previous $10 million. It’s well-funded, but not near nearly as well as some other players using the similar material, copper-indium-gallium-selenide (CIGS), to make newer, low-cost solar cells. Nanosolar, Heliovolt, Solyndra and Miasole have all raised significantly more… Continue Reading
SoloPower raises “tens of millions” more, despite similarity to competitors
SoloPower, yet another company in Silicon Valley trying to making cheaper solar power modules, has raised “tens of millions of dollars” more in capital.
We wrote about the company four months ago, when it raised $10 million, and noted it uses the same CIGS material that several other start-ups are using, and which are having problems reaching sufficient “efficiency.” Efficiency refers to the percentage of the sun’s energy that is translated into electricity by the photovoltaic… Continue Reading
SoloPower, latest solar cell start-up, raises $10M
Updated
SoloPower, a new start-up that makes “thin-film” solar cells, so called because they are thinner and more flexible than existing silicon products, has raised $10 million.
The news was reported by VentureWire this morning (sub required).
Founded in late 2005, Milpitas, Calif.-based SoloPower raised the financing from Crosslink Capital, fund manager Firsthand Capital Management Inc. and individual investors last year.
This is significant because there are a handful of other start-ups that are building similar technologies, but they… Continue Reading