Latest news

Unveiling the World’s Largest Circular and Lightweight Solar Installation

Genk, Belgium, October 17, 2024 – In the presence of Genk’s Mayor, Wim Dries, SABIC officially inaugurated the world’s largest solar installation made entirely of recyclable materials at its site in Genk today. The innovative solar panels, developed by Dutch manufacturer Solarge, are 100% recyclable and significantly lighter than traditional panels. ENGIE was responsible for the installation and financing.


National Growth Fund Program SolarNL

Si HJT cell factory

Flexible solar foils

Lightweight/integrated PV

National Economic Growth Fund (Nationaal Groeifonds) subsidy awarded
SolarNL Press release (in Dutch), June 30, 2023
SolarNL Press release (in English), June 30, 2023
Dutch Government Press release (in English), July 2023

Groeifonds application – Press release (in Dutch), March 7, 2023


Urgency

Our energy supply is changing dramatically and quickly, and in this transition, ecological necessity meets economic opportunity. The transition to renewable energy sources is necessary to evolve into sustainable economies and mitigate climate change. It also requires and creates vast opportunities for technological innovation and business creation – which this National Growth Fund proposal intends to grasp. Electricity from sunlight (photovoltaics, PV) will play a major role in the energy transition and is poised to grow worldwide to the ‘terawatt’ scale. In the Netherlands, the installed capacity is set to grow from 18 GWp today to 100-250 GWp in 2050. Hence, PV is a crucial ‘industry of the future’.

This Growth Fund proposal aims to create the necessary innovative PV technologies and industrial basis in the Netherlands to capture economic value of billions of euros for decades to come. In addition, this ‘local manufacturing’, using short lines from supply to markets, will generate multiple environmental benefits and reinforce strategic autonomy in our energy supply. On all these points, the proposal is fully aligned with the currently accelerating momentum towards new industrial public policies on EU level.