Boris Hageney

While there still remain many big challenges to addressing climate change it’s important to remember…. we are making progress.  🚀 The accelerating progress in electricity generation is awe inspiring. Solar PV generation grew by a record 306 TWh (+31%) in the first half of 2025, accounting for 83% of the global rise in electricity demand. The IEA predicts we’ll double global renewable power capacity by 2030 with an additional 4,600 GW. And their estimates have often fallen short. So I’m looking forward to seeing this curve bend further down and to the right! Great insights from Axios, the International Energy Agency (IEA), and Rhodium Group https://lnkd.in/gSiy4ZwK

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Jan-Philipp Mai pitches SOLAR MATERIALS at Ecosummit 2025 to promote their Series B. Solar Materials recycles PV panels at their end of life to enable a global circular solar economy. Their patented recycling technology recovers and then sells 98% of the raw materials following a reverse production approach with a focus on delamination. The first fully automated solar recycling factory in Magdeburg is online and certified and has a capacity of 7.000 t per year. The German startup has got a lot of supply and demand, plans a second factory in Italy and eventually wants to license its technology globally. Solar Materials is backed by First Imagine! Ventures and bmp Ventures, closed its €12.2M Series A in April 2024, currently raises €20M Series B and plans an IPO in 2029. https://lnkd.in/dwstmwRD

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ClimateTech is on fire! Meet five startups that just raised big to fuel the green transition. 1️⃣ Factor2 Energy → Reimagining Geothermal Energy with CO₂ 💰 Funding: $9,1M 🤝 Investors: At One Ventures, HTGF | High-Tech Gründerfonds, Gründerfonds Ruhr, Verve Ventures, Siemens Energy 📍 Sector: Energy 2️⃣ Terra Oleo → Next-Generation Fats and Oils to Sustain the World’s Products 💰 Funding: $3,1M 🤝 Investors: ADB Ventures, Better Bite Ventures, elev8.vc, The Radical Fund, Breakthrough Energy 📍 Sector: BioTech 3️⃣ BIOWEG → Biodegradable alternatives to microplastics 💰 Funding: €16M 🤝 Investors: Axeleo Capital (AXC), EIC - European Innovation Council, NBank Capital, BONVENTURE, Dr.-Ing. Frank Jenner 📍 Sector: BioTech 4️⃣ Xampla → Creating natural materials for commercial applications 💰 Funding: $14M 🤝 Investors: Emerald Technology Ventures, BGF, Matterwave Ventures, Amadeus Capital Partners, Horizons Ventures 📍 Sector: Materials 5️⃣ RYE → The intelligence & automation layer for multi-site energy management 💰 Funding: €1M 🤝 Investors: CapitalT, January Ventures, Norrsken Evolve 📍 Sector: Energy 💬 Curious: what’s the most exciting ClimateTech investment you’ve seen this month?

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🇪🇺☀️ 𝐈𝐬 𝐄𝐮𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞 𝐚𝐭 𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐤 𝐨𝐟 𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐞𝐝𝐠𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝? 𝐎𝐫 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐰𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐦 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐫𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐥𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐥 𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧? Together with Javier Sanz Rodriguez from InnoEnergy, I was recently asked by Marianne Lehnis to share my perspective for her Forbes article: 𝘖𝘶𝘵𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘣𝘺 𝘊𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘢: 𝘊𝘢𝘯 𝘌𝘶𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘔𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘢 𝘚𝘰𝘭𝘢𝘳 𝘊𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘉𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘛𝘰𝘰 𝘓𝘢𝘵𝘦? The piece touches on a nerve. Europe once led the solar revolution - with research, ambition, and a vision for a clean energy future. But over the years, we’ve watched manufacturing shift east. Today, China dominates the solar value chain with staggering scale and speed. 📊 More than 80% of solar panels globally now come from China - thanks to integrated gigafactories, long-term industrial policy, and strategic supply chains. So, is there still a role for Europe in this new era of solar? Having worked in the solar and energy sector for 15+ years, my answer is a clear 𝐲𝐞𝐬. But only if we 𝐚𝐜𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐮𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐬. We won’t win by trying to outscale China. But Europe can lead in areas that matter deeply for our future: 🔹 High-efficiency and specialty PV for urban, agriPV, and industrial rooftops 🔹 Smart energy systems that combine solar, storage, EVs, and intelligent demand 🔹 Resilient and circular supply chains that serve both our climate and energy security goals To get there, we need tighter alignment between policy, capital, and industry. The solar race isn’t just about cost, it’s about sovereignty, innovation, and long-term resilience. 💬 What do you think? What’s the boldest realistic path forward for solar in Europe? #SolarPower #EnergyTransition #CleanTech #EuropeanIndustry #AllElectrifiedWorld #ResilientEurope

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New Ember report dives deeper into same topic as my recent analysis, but with much more rigor, to come to same conclusion: -> solar + batteries in ratio of 3-4 kWh battery capacity to solar PV kWp peak capacity currently gives very high (~80-90%) and economical ($0.10/kWh) 24/7/365 coverage in most places. By my own (cruder) analysis, we're heading towards more like $0.05/kWh rapidly, and some combination of existing grid and other renewable sources like biogas from waste will do well filling in the gaps. I've since come to also conclude that the absolute best place for a battery is next to a solar panel near a point of use. That will also have the benefit of fundamentally altered and reducing apparently requisite grid capacity expansion. Back in my Shell GameChanger days, we had a scenario for this - we called it "Sunshine States." Well, here we are. Implications are more profound than most people imagine. Those that 'get it' will win, including good news for 'the many', and those that opt out will be left behind. As I've shared before, other energy tech will now be playing the new game of "energy limbo" - dancing and contorting to get under the solar+battery bar. Good luck competing with that economically, nuclear - at least anytime soon, and perhaps ever? Turns out a highly over-sized nuclear reactor at a safe distance in the sky is a pretty sweet energy solution. https://lnkd.in/gqsWPWx2

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𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐀𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐚’𝐬 𝐛𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲 𝐨𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬? We’re world leaders in solar: ✅ 16 GW on homes ✅ 7 GW on grid-scale farms ❌ But just ~4 GW on commercial + industrial rooftops That’s a massive “missing middle” which means literally thousands of hectares of warehouse, cold storage, food manufacturing and factory roofs just sitting in the sun, doing nothing. And the kicker? Those rooftops could be saving businesses millions of dollars every year and the planet thousands of tones of emissions with zero capital outlay! 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐚𝐩 𝐰𝐞’𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐛𝐬𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐜𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐭 MetroElectro : ⚡ Zero-capital, zero-hassle solar + battery systems … fully installed, managed + maintained by us ⚡ Immediate savings on every kWh used ⚡ Long-term emissions cuts and ESG wins for business Australia has already proven solar works at home … That's a fact! Now it’s time to unlock the same advantage for industry, where the impact is bigger, faster, and more transformative. If you’re a facility leader, CFO, business owner or tenant sitting under thousands of square meters of roof, let’s turn it into a power asset instead of a liability. 𝐃𝐌 𝐦𝐞 𝐨𝐫 𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐦𝐞 𝐚 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐥𝐞𝐭'𝐬 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚 𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥-𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐮𝐩𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐞. #CISolar #CommercialSolar #CleanEnergy #EnergyTransition #MetroElectro

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🌍 Climate Tech Funding Rounds of the Week ⚡ Recurrent Energy ($824M) : developer of utility-scale solar and energy storage projects across North America 💰 Investors : Wells Fargo, Siemens Financial Services... ☀️ Enpal (€814M) : German provider of residential solar, storage and heating as a service 💰 Investors : Bank of America, Crédit Agricole CIB... 🔋 Redwood Materials ($350M) : lithium-ion battery recycling company scaling closed-loop domestic supply chains 💰 Investors : Eclipse, nVentures... 🌾 Arbor Energy ($55M) : developer of compact biomass-gas hybrid power plants for distributed clean power 💰 Investors : Lowercarbon Capital, Gigascale Capital... 🛰 SenseNet Inc. ($15M) : satellite-based wildfire detection platform using AI and real-time remote sensing 💰 Investors : Stormbreaker Ventures, Fusion Fund... 🧱 DMAT (€5M) : developer of low-carbon cement technologies for decarbonizing construction materials 💰 Investors : Primo Capital, Deep Future...

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The hidden costs of hesitation: Why speeding up the energy transition is essential A recent study featured by pv magazine Deutschland delivers a sobering message: If we continue to delay the expansion of renewable energies any further, Germany could face economic losses of up to €100 billion by 2035. This is about to jeopardise our energy security, economic competitiveness, and future prosperity. ⚡️ The study highlights that the costs of inaction are not only ecological but also economic. Delays in expanding renewable energy infrastructure could lead to increased energy prices, supply chain uncertainties, and a loss of industrial competitiveness. At VSB Group, we experience these pressures daily. We are committed to accelerating the energy transition through smart projects, efficient processes and our outstanding team. Each wind turbine and solar panel that we install brings us one step closer to achieving a resilient and affordable energy future. ☀💨 We can't afford another lost decade. It's time to move together with our new partners from TotalEnergies from managing delays to enabling solutions. Let's go! #VSB #RenewableEnergy #EnergyTransition #CleanEnergy #OnshoreWind #SolarPower #GridOptimisation 

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🔋 Battery Business & Development Forum 2025 – An Industry Energized by Opportunity ⚡ Just got back from an inspiring BBDF in Frankfurt, jointly organized by conexio pse, pv magazine, and SolarPower Europe. With 400+ participants from hardware providers, developers, investors, and service providers, it’s crystal clear: the momentum behind BESS (Battery Energy Storage Systems) is real—and growing fast. 🌍 Hotspot Markets Germany, the UK, and Italy continue to stand out as particularly exciting markets in Europe—each for its own reasons, from regulatory frameworks to grid needs and market design. 🚀 A Spirit of Opportunity What struck me: the entrepreneurial drive in the room. Everyone shares the same belief: BESS capacity will multiply in the coming years, and it's imperative for decarbonising energy systems. But it’s not all straightforward... ⚖️ Key Questions Ahead There’s still much to be discussed around: 1. How revenue streams will evolve (merchant, ancillary, capacity markets, behind-the meter) 2. The future role of different project types: stand-alone, co-location, 3. Regulatory clarity and long-term investment certainty 🤝 Why Events Like BBDF Matter This kind of in-person exchange is invaluable—and it is great to hear there will be another BBDF in 2026! At Vireo Ventures, we’re committed to making sure start-ups have an even stronger presence next time. #BESS #EnergyStorage #BatteryBusiness #BBDF2025 #CleanTech #Startups #VireoVentures #EnergyTransition

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What a WEEK in European climate-tech. 🔥 €1.2B+ of fresh capital for climate startups: 🔥 Cloover: €1B+ debt facility for residential solar 🔥 terralayr: €192m for grid-scale battery storage 🔥 Optalysys: £23m for photonic computing On the fund side: 🔥 PROTOTYPE (Andreas): Fund III for EU robotics & physical AI 🔥 Ananda Impact Ventures: €73m first close 🔥 IQ Capital: £50m for deeptech 🔥 Vanagon: €20m first fund for AI & deeptech 🔥 Plural: raising a €1B third fund for EU tech Read the full 5-minute briefing here: https://lnkd.in/e4vEMBfc Until then, 🌊 keep making waves.

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☀️ Biodiversity & Solar Farms – a new frontier begins in Central Germany! 🚀 We're excited to announce a pioneering project with ENERPARC AG, deploying Hula’s technology at their 55 MWp solar park in Lauterbach (Hesse). This collaboration marks a major step towards automated and real-time biodiversity monitoring in the renewable energies sector. 🛰️ We deployed our BioT sensor network across the site in a precise grid structure. Our devices continuously monitor acoustic activity 24/7, identifying and localizing present species, activity hotspots, and breeding sites without disturbing wildlife. 📊 The goal? Providing high-precision bird mapping at scale to support Enerparc’s engagement with local authorities and to optimize biodiversity-enhancing maintenance practices. 🐦 This is a big step forward towards creating ecological intelligence to advance the energy transition in harmony with biodiversity. Thank you, Stefan Mueller, Arne Radl, Fabian Schmalz, and Christian Gropp, for your trust and for embarking on this journey with us.

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Search4Solar expands to Spain with Thomas Weile and Ivo Poos: Powering Southern Europe’s solar growth Search4solar, Europe’s leading digital marketplace for solar equipment launches operations in Valencia, aiming to accelerate the energy transition and strengthen ties with EPCs and installers across the Iberian Peninsula.

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Today we dropped the recording of last week's amazing expert panel on Ag + Vertical Solar (#agrivoltaics). The discussion with four leading experts: Helge Biernath (Sunzaun), Ian Skor, PE (Sandbox Solar), Professor Majdi Abou Najm (UC Davis), and Oregon farmer John Langdon. The strategic insights they shared could reshape how you think about solar development and agrivoltaics. The economics are undeniable: 📈 15x higher energy density with vertical systems (ask Helge Biernath how this works) 📈 8-12% water cost savings for farmers 📈 120%+ land productivity combining energy + agriculture 📈 Premium pricing capturing 62¢/kWh afternoon peaks 📈 5% modeling accuracy - no more guesswork But here's what really caught my attention: ❌ Traditional approach: Ask communities to choose between farming and solar (and face the resistance) ✅ Agrivoltaics approach: Give communities the best of both worlds (and watch barriers disappear) The strategic advantage is clear: For developers → Access markets previously closed to traditional solar.  For farmers → Diversify income without sacrificing production For investors, → Multiple revenue streams reduce portfolio risk. For communities → Preserve agriculture while enabling clean energy This isn't about being "green" anymore. This is about being smart with capital allocation. #AgrivoltaicsROI #SolarDevelopment #StrategicLandUse #CleanEnergyInvestment #BusinessStrategy https://lnkd.in/gxZSBTNv

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