From south London roofing company to respected international solar player – the rise and rise of Solarcentury, by Dr Seb Berry, former Director of Communications at Solarcentury.
In the beginning, there was one man with a vision, a far-sighted investor, a team of five, and a metal shed – 22 years later, Solarcentury, the pioneering, campaigning UK company that Jeremy Leggett founded in the final years of the last century, has truly come of age.
In November 2020, privately owned Solarcentury was acquired by the Norwegian renewable energy giant Statkraft for just under £120 million, immediately cementing Solarcentury’s rapid rise from south London roofing company to a leading light in the global league of big solar players.
Statkraft has a target of developing at least 8GW of solar and wind by 2025, much of which will come from Solarcentury’s existing solar farm pipeline throughout Europe and South America. For now, the Solarcentury name and brand lives on, but the plan is to merge the two teams under the Statkraft brand by the end of 2021.
Solarcentury’s story, while not unique, is unusual in the history of the UK solar industry, a sector so often plagued by changes of policy and bewildering government u-turns, what was once termed the “solar-coaster.”
Barbara Flesche, Solarcentury’s new Chief Executive Officer believes that Solarcentury rode the solar-coaster well precisely because the company “anticipated and navigated our way through government u-turns, significant price drops, supply challenges,” and was able to “diversify away from the UK earlier than some competitors.” It was the UK experience, which included for example two lengthy Solarcentury court cases against the UK government (one successful, one unsuccessful), that helped to inform a broader international strategy, including prioritising subsidy-free markets, wherever possible. Flesche explains that whilst subsidy free “is not our entire focus, it has been a critical success factor not to have to rely on government policy everywhere we operate.”
Flesche confirmed that the high-growth solar markets for Solarcentury in 2021 will be Spain, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Greece, the UK, and Chile. It is too early to say whether integration with Statkraft will open further market expansion opportunities immediately, but that evaluation process is ongoing, and no doubt we can expect to see further announcements later this year. As far as the notoriously bumpy UK market is concerned, Flesche observes that the “market is working at utility scale, but well-designed government policy is still required if we want to see the pace of deployment accelerated.” It is important in this respect that the government’s decision to reintroduce solar into the contracts for difference auction later this year, is matched by serious ambition in terms of the overall solar cap for this, and future auction rounds.
The company that once won a Queen’s Award for Export for its solar rooftop tiles and manufacturing innovation, and installed solar PV on the homes of two former Prime Ministers, has latterly focused 100% on utility-scale solar, in part because of the constant stop start nature of UK government solar policy after 2010. Solarcentury’s residential business was sold to Swedish installer Svea Solar in April 2020, for an undisclosed sum. As Flesche explains, “the focus on utility-scale has been critically important for our success,” but the Statkraft acquisition opens up new possibilities. “Statkraft is a much larger and more diverse business and has an offer for UK businesses whereby Statkraft provides fully-funded solar systems on the company’s rooftops and land, and the client simply buys kWhs. It’s of particular interest as Statkraft’s solution is off balance sheet.”
A key part of the Solarcentury story has been its commitment to “making a difference in the fight against climate change,” to upholding ethical values, and to supporting the charity SolarAid with an annual donation equivalent to 5% of net profit. In recent years, that donation has been substantial, with a record £920,000 given to the charity in September 2020. How, if at all, will the Statkraft acquisition impact on this important legacy? Flesche emphasised that “Statkraft and Solarcentury are extremely well aligned from a values perspective. Both businesses are mission driven; Solarcentury is in business to combat climate chaos, and Statkraft backs 100% renewable power.” She confirmed that “a new form of relationship is currently being explored with SolarAid, as Statkraft is sympathetic to the value Solarcentury has placed on the close relationship we have with them.”
It is clearly still early days in the integration process, but Flesche was keen to emphasise that both Solarcentury and Statkraft are in growth mode, and that “Statkraft invested in Solarcentury to accelerate deployment, not to find efficiencies.” A welcome message for Solarcentury’s 180 staff. Flesche concludes that “by joining forces, Statkraft and Solarcentury plan to accelerate the growth of solar and become one of the world’s leading renewable energy companies.” It is the type of bold, visionary goal that has characterised the Solarcentury journey from the very beginning and suggests that the next chapter in that story will be just as memorable.
