Seaham company moves step closer to commercial manufacture of pioneering solar panels thanks to £4.3million of new funding

Power Roll have spent the last decade investing £25million in research and development at their pilot plant to design and patent the new light weight solar panels which can literally be rolled out from a roll of plastic.

Twenty five times lighter and significantly cheaper than traditional solar panels, the new roll out energy provider could potentially make this form of renewable energy far more accessible.

Speaking to the Echo in April, Power Roll’s chief manufacturing officer Ross Nagle said he hoped the company could soon move from the research stage to the commercial production of the panels.

Ross, 56, said: “We have already identified a site in the Durham area for our commercial production.

“In the next 18 months we hope to scale up and be producing around 100 megawatts of electricity each year, which is the equivalent of one million square metres of Power Roll panels each year.

“In three years we hope this will have increased to one gigawatt which equates to around 6 million square metres per year.

“The transition will see a significant increase in employment opportunities with a workforce of up to 300 people.”

The transition to commercial production is now a step closer after the company announced yesterday (October 15) it has secured £4.3m funding to “accelerate commercial plans”.

The money has been provided by “existing investors”, Maven Equity Finance, and £1.5million of funding from the British Business Bank’s Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II.

A statement from the company said: “We will now focus on completing a subsequent fundraise that is already at an advanced stage, to allow Power Roll to complete its relocation to a commercial scale manufacturing facility.

“This will give Power Roll the ability to initially produce 100MW scaling to 1GW to meet global growth demands.”

The company highlighted how “one in three” commercial rooftops cannot handle the weight of traditional solar panels and that their flexible roll out panel has the potential to “unlock £250bn of an untapped market for commercial and industrial rooftops”.

Power Roll CEO Neil Spann said: “Power Roll is committed to transforming and reinventing renewable energy globally, enabling more commercial and industrial businesses to access energy through our lightweight flexible solar panel solutions.

“We have built the foundations for a very exciting future which will generate solar power without draining the Earth’s resources and meet the needs of an increasing demand for sustainable and eco-efficient energy sources.

“We are delighted by the support we have received from both new and existing investors in this funding round and look forward to delivering the next stage of our journey to full commercialisation.“

Commenting on their investment, Sarah Newbould, Senior Manager at British Business Bank said: “Power Roll is an ambitious and innovative business with a mission to transition to green energy and transform the future of our planet.

“The Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II is committed to supporting technology- enabled, ESG focussed businesses like Power Roll to access the finance they need to achieve their ambitions across the North and beyond.”

Dr Micheal Dickens, Investment Manager at Maven Equity Finance added: “Securing investment is about much more than just the finance. It’s about finding a long-term business partner who is as committed to the business as the management team.

“We originally invested in Power Roll in 2020 and have worked alongside Neil and the management team as they achieved a number of development, technical and commercial milestones.

“We’re delighted to continue our support at such a pivotal point in the company’s growth journey. With green energy more important than ever, the need for low-cost clean energy has never been greater and Power Roll’s solar film technology looks to revolutionise solar energy and assist with the transition towards a more sustainable electrical generation system.”