Solar energy start-up Tigo Energy Ltd., which develops solutions for improving the performance of photovoltaic cells, has begun operation in the US in collaboration with Architectural Glass & Aluminum Company Inc. (AGA). Their joint venture aims to provide a solar energy solution for residents of high-rises.
The venture obtained a grant from the US Department of Energy and Israel-United States Binational Industrial Research and Development Foundation (BIRD-F). Tigo's flagship product, the Energy Maximizer System will be integrated into solar panels used by AGA, a leading US glazing contractor for glass and aluminum buildings.
AGA will supply the glass and silicon coatings for the photovoltaic panels, and Tigo will supply the electronics that turn the glass into solar receptors.
Tigo COO Itzik Weinstein said, "Our electronics solution is intended to achieve maximum efficiency by the panels, as well as to prevent fires. The Maximizer obtained UL standard for safety in the US and EU CE Mark certification in 2009."
Weinstein added that the project was now in the alpha stage, and that, under the terms of the grant, the companies should be able to provide a commercial solution within a year. "We've hired people, we have money, and at our rate of activity, we believe that we'll achieve the target," he said.
The project is important, because until now there have been no mass market solar energy solutions, but only for industrial, commercial, and public buildings, as well as for owners of large tracts of land or farming communities. People who live in apartment buildings have not been able to participate in the new energy world, which is based in large part on solar infrastructures. If the Tigo-AGA project succeeds, apartment residents will also be able to generate solar energy, with its inherent benefits (the sale of electricity to the national grid at higher than normal prices).
The US incentives benefits package include recognizing the installation of solar panels as an expense and classifying them as renewable energy. In other words, the covering will be eligible for subsidies if it is used to generate electricity from a renewable source.
Weinstein said, "The return is on all the materials and the labor."
The US federal government provides a fixed 30% subsidy on the cost (including labor) of a renewable energy project, and additional subsidiaries come from states. "In California, the annual return is said to be 13% for homeowners who install panels. That's a huge percentage," says Weinstein.
After the launch of the project and the receipt of orders from Europe, Tigo appointed a business development manager, based in Frankfurt, Germany, for the continent. The company has also opened an office in Japan. The company says that its orders and orders backlog, based on letters of intent, in the US, Europe, and Japan are 100 megawatts for the next 12 months. It estimates that sales will reach $20 million in 2010, compared with earlier forecasts of no more than $15 million.
Weinstein says, "In order to supply products for the production of 100 megawatts, we're beginning industrial-scale production. We're looking at production lines in China for this purpose."
"Globes": Aren't you worried about intellectual property theft?
Weinstein: "No, because the Maximizer is a 'dumb' system. The product's brain will continue to be made in Israel. However, it's hard to deal with Israel's manufacturing costs for an annual production of 100 megawatts, and we intend to double this. Because of the need for a rapid response to market demand, we decided to begin production at a Taiwanese company. In Israel we're continuing to streamline production processes at subcontractors, in order to lower costs, and we manufacture the smart components here.
"We also want to build a factory in Israel. It's possible to streamline manufacture in Israel at the worker level; in other words to employ a few high-production workers by using smart devices. We're examining all the options, but we have a only short time to respond to meet the market demand."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on April 18, 2010
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