SolarDuck secures 15 million euro funding for the further development of offshore floating solar power
SolarDuck is excited to announce that it has secured additional funding for the development and deployment of Offshore Floating Solar power technology. This funding sets the company on a path of continued growth, able to further build on its leading position in the Offshore Floating Solar Energy industry, deliver its first commercial projects and increase its impact as the company works towards its goal of deploying over 1 GW of offshore generated solar electricity by 2030.
The funding has been provided by both existing and new investors. An international consortium of Katapult Ocean, Green Tower, Energy Transition Fund Rotterdam and Invest-NL all share SolarDuck’s commitment to accelerating a sustainable supply of offshore energy with offshore floating solar power. With the new funding, SolarDuck is able to extend its leading position by deploying its first commercial projects. In addition, its experienced and dedicated team continues to optimize the technology to build markets around the world and accelerate further roll-out.
As the world is electrifying and a rising world population and urbanization are resulting in land scarcity, the market for offshore energy generation is increasing. SolarDuck’s technology can be deployed in wind-scarce, but sun-rich regions as ‘stand-alone’ offshore floating solar farms. Co- locating SolarDuck technology with offshore wind is also possible, as will be happening in the Dutch North Sea. SolarDuck is aiming to generate a sizeable impact by replacing fossil powered energy sources like coal-fired powerplants and diesel generators. This technology also enables island and offshore installations – and even countries – to set up an independent supply of renewable energy.
Projects: 3 countries + the largest hybrid floating solar plant
SolarDuck has a pipeline of over 3.5GWp and has already secured projects around the world. Amongst other projects, work is being done on a 5MW demonstrator project to be installed at the Hollandse Kust West VII offshore wind park in the Netherlands (North Sea) in collaboration with RWE. When completed, it will be the largest hybrid floating solar plant in existence. In addition, SolarDuck is providing Japan’s first ever offshore floating solar plant, to be installed in Tokyo Bay with local partners. A third project is underway with TNB Renewables in Malaysia. Ahead of these projects, SolarDuck will launch its offshore demonstrator project named ‘Merganser’ early next year. It will be installed and tested in the Dutch North Sea.
Koen Burgers, CEO and co-founder of SolarDuck, says: “We are delighted to have secured this latest round of funding. SolarDuck is introducing a new asset class of energy generation. With demand increasing, offshore floating solar offers real promise for the decarbonisation of our energy supply. This successful funding round provides us with the means to continue the development and deployment of both our Team and technology.”
This view is shared by the existing investors. Katapult Ocean has been on board since the very beginning of SolarDuck. Jonas Svegaarden, CEO, Katapult Ocean, says: “We are very excited to announce our increased investment in SolarDuck and to support their next phase of growth. In order to harness the blue growth opportunity, we must also endeavour to build offshore. SolarDuck represents a new category of ocean infrastructure, which has the potential to unlock significant resources towards the global renewable energy mix and to enable enhanced economics to existing offshore renewable assets”.
SolarDuck is a Dutch-Norwegian cleantech company bringing to market a world-class Offshore Floating Solar solution. The company aims to electrify the world with OFS using its unique and patented technology by deploying 1GW of renewable energy from 2030.