Berlin-based greentech startup Zolar has raised an additional €10 million (US$11.9 million) in an investment round led by Energy Impact Partners.
The fundraiser led by investor EIP has added €10 million to Zolar’s series B funding, bringing the fund’s total to €35 million, which will be used to triple the residential installer’s solar capacity in Germany and accelerate its growth.
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Alex Melzer, co-founder of and chief executive of Zolar, said the company has been able to grow its revenues “significantly” despite travel restrictions and work disruption imposed by Germany’s COVID-19 lockdown.
“In the past year, we have been able to grow our revenue significantly, and in 2021, we are targeting to triple installations across Germany,” he said, adding that the additional €10 million from EIP would take the company “to the next level”.
“The investment of Energy Impact Partners shows that investors recognise the relevance of regenerative energy.”
Zolar supplies photovoltaic systems which manage renewable energy for homeowners. The company raised €4 million during series A funding in 2016 and, also raised €15 million from investors including Czech VC Inven Capital, TS Ventures, Heartcore Capital, Statkraft Ventures, BayWa r.e. Energy Ventures and Partech Partners last September to expand its business overseas.
EIP’s managing partner Matthias Dill said that Zolar is “one of the fastest growing energy startups in Germany”, adding that the investment would provide the company with ongoing support it its growth plans.
German solar developers installed 4.88GW of PV capacity last year, driven by a rise in residential systems, according to the Federal Network Agency (Bundesnetzagetur). Roughly 151,700 smaller PV systems were installed last year, totalling 1,131MW capacity, and installations with a power limit of 10kWp increased their share of the market from 15% to 23%.
