In a joint project with partner and investor ENGIE, the largest OPV project to date has been completed on a roof

 La Rochelle, France – 15^th November 2017 – Today ENGIE, Heliatek and the Departement of Charentes Maritimes officially inaugurated the world’s largest BiOPV installation on a roof. In the southwestern port of La Rochelle, France, 500 m² of Heliatek’s solar films were installed on the roof of the “Pierre Mendes France” middle school. With 3 different lengths of 2, 4 and 5,7 meters, nearly 400 films were applied in record time. They were installed on two different roof surfaces. The result is the largest BiOPV – Building integrated Organic PhotoVoltaic – roof installation, worldwide to date, and the living proof of the ease and speed at which these solar films can be installed on a building.

First time use of HeliaSol^® – installation in record time

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The HeliaSol^® “ready-to-use” film solution was used on a roof installation for the first time. With self-adhesive backside, as well as preconfigured wiring, HeliaSol^® is mounted directly onto existing roof surfaces and only needs to be electrically connected. This 500 m² installation took very little time. Taking into account the preparation time, a team of 6 people needed only 8 hours to install 500m² of HeliaSol^® as deployment took just over 2 minutes per film. With an installed power of 22.5 kWp, about 23.8 MWh of electricity will be generated annually, which is equivalent of the annually consumption of 5 households. It represents approximately 15% of the school’s electricity demand.

HeliaSol^®

With HeliaSol^®, Heliatek is expanding its product portfolio. BiOPV has been the focus of Heliatek for several years. HeliaSol^® serves as an individualized “ready-to-use” solar product solution for the retrofitting market of roof surfaces and facades on existing industrial and commercial buildings. HeliaSol^® is suitable for all energy-saving renovation projects where restrictions on weight, statics, access, insulation, guarantee or penetration of the roof play a role in product selection. This installation in France is the first step in preparing for a general market entry.

Heliatek is anticipating market developments and increased requirements to integrate existing surfaces into the energy system of a building. “Light roofs, which usually do not allow for standard PV technology, can now produce green electricity with our HeliaSol^®. This school reduces its carbon footprint and contributes to a more sustainable energy production. Thanks to our strong partner and investor ENGIE, we were able to realize this exciting project in no time,” says Thibaud Le Séguillon, CEO of Heliatek GmbH.

ENGIE is assuming a leading role in the transformation of the energy sector. “Renewable energy is an essential part of our strategy of decarbonization, decentralization as well as digitalization of energy. Almost half of the energy consumption comes from the buildings sector. New, and above all existing buildings, will have to reduce energy consumption and make energy use far more efficient. Buildings that couldn’t previously be used for energy production will be able to cover their own electricity requirements in the future. With Heliatek’s technology, they will contribute to a decentralized and green energy supply,” says Isabelle Kocher, CEO of ENGIE.

About ENGIE

ENGIE is committed to take on the major challenges of the energy revolution, towards a world more decarbonized, decentralized and digitised. The Group aims at becoming the leader of this new energy world by focusing on three key activities for the future: low carbon generation in particular from natural gas and renewable energies, energy infrastructures and efficient solutions adapted to all its clients´ needs (individuals, businesses, territories, etc.). The customers´ satisfaction, innovation and digital are at the heart of ENGIE´s development. ENGIE is active in around 70 countries, employs 150,000 people worldwide and achieved revenues of €66.6 billion in 2016. The Group is listed on the Paris and Brussels stock exchanges (ENGI) and is represented in the main financial indices (CAC 40, BEL 20, DJ Euro Stoxx 50, Euronext 100, FTSE Eurotop 100, MSCI Europe) and non-financial indices (DJSI World, DJSI Europe and Euronext Vigeo Eiris – World 120, Eurozone 120, Europe 120, France 20, CAC 40 Governance).

About Heliatek

As technology leader in organic electronics, Heliatek develops, produces and distributes large area Organic PV solar films. Its business model is to supply the custom-designed solar film HeliaFilm® to partners in the building and construction material industry for integration into façade or roofing system elements. The stand-alone version HeliaSol® targets the retrofit market and can be easily applied on existing building envelops. Today Heliatek maintains a total staff of 110 specialists at its facilities in Dresden and Ulm, Germany.

Research and development work, as well as the installation of production technology, has been funded by the Free State of Saxony, the Federal Republic of Germany and the European Union.

Press Contact:
Kathleen Walter / Heliatek GmbH / Treidlerstr. 3 / 01139 Dresden
Tel: +49 351 213 034 421; kathleen.walter@heliatek.com;

www.heliatek.com

HeliaSol and HeliaFilm^® are registered trademarks of Heliatek GmbH.