MCPV, the PV manufacturing spin-off started by Resilient Group in 2020, was awarded a package of grants and loans under the Dutch National Growth Fund programme, as part of SolarNL, the joint industry proposal for large-scale production of circular solar cells and solar panels in the Netherlands.
The SolarNL programme is an ambitious collaboration between industry and research institutes for the development and large-scale production of circular integrated solar cells and panels made in The Netherlands. Project partners, besides MCPV, include Amolf, TNO, Solarge, Exasun, Lightyear Layer and Hyett Solar, among others. The SolarNL proposal was awarded the highest total public funding support as well as best score overall out of 47 proposals which saw 18 proposals approved.
In supporting this sector programme with a total of €412mln in grants and loans, the Dutch Government is reinforcing its commitment to accelerate climate mitigating measures as well as strongly supporting the further development of clean tech industries. The Circular Solar Manufacturing Project embodies this commitment, and MCPV takes immense pride in being selected as an integral contributor to this trailblazing initiative.
The MCPV project is designed to significantly elevate Europe’s collective capacity within the solar industry and related supply chains, utilising advanced digital manufacturing technologies, coordinating scale-up across the value chain, and implementing sustainability and circular economy principles from the initial design stages.
When reaching full capacity, the project is forecast to employ more than 500 full time clean tech jobs, boosting the Northern Netherlands region of Groningen’s transition from Natural Gas production towards a leading position in Europe’s emerging Net Zero Industry sector. The MCPV team is looking forward to work closely with all local, regional, and national stakeholders on the implementation of this state-of-the-art manufacturing project.
Benjamin Strahm, CTO of MCPV: “This public support is an important achievement towards a new era of PV manufacturing in Europe, associating the most recent technologies and knowledge in various areas to achieve productivity that has never been reached so far.” Dr Benjamin Strahm.
Marc Rechter, CEO of MCPV: “With this important public support of the MCPV project, we have the opportunity to build an emerging European clean tech champion in the global PV market. Europe has the brains, technology, capital, and resources to build its own independent, competitive clean energy system, and the MCPV team is super proud to contribute towards this goal. We look forward to work with the broader Dutch and European value chain to create a resilient and profitable European PV industry, maximise ESG impact and create exciting opportunities for those that want to accelerate positive change.”