RatedPower, a Spanish developer of design and optimization software for utility-scale solar projects, raised €5.3m (~$6.1m) in Series A funding. The round was led by Seaya Ventures, a European and Latin American venture capital firm based in Spain, which invests in sustainable energy technology companies.
The funds will be used to drive international expansion into key solar markets like the United States. It will also be used to accelerate the development of new products and features to accelerate RatedPower’s software-as-a-service (SaaS) suite for renewable energy.
“Over the past four years, we have built a unique SaaS platform that has facilitated the process of building solar power plants in almost every country on the planet,” said Andrea Barber, co-founder and CEO of RatedPower.
The company emphasizes that the pursuit of systemic efficiency is the only effective way to fight climate change and meet the Paris Agreement. However, he argues that designing and engineering solar projects to estimate costs and energy production is complex and overwhelming.
RatedPower’s software, pvDesign, the company claims, speeds up the design and engineering process for solar PV projects. The company claims that it helps companies increase efficiency and reduce PV project construction costs and levelized cost of energy while increasing asset accuracy and profitability.
According to a report by the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and Wood Mackenzie, solar accounted for 58% of all new electrical capacity additions in the United States. Around 5 GW of new solar capacity was installed in the first quarter of 2021, a new record in the first quarter and a 46% increase compared to the first quarter of 2020. The utilities sector accounts for the majority of these installations, with a record in the first quarter of 3.6 GW. SEIA also increased its goal for Solar+ Decade to represent 30% of total U.S. electricity generation by 2030. The previous goal was 20% by 2030.
RatedPower claims to have over 1,300 users including customers like Iberdrola, Engie, BayWa, AES, Clenera, Sungrow, Burns & McDonnell, Celsia, Shell, Samsung in pvDesign, having achieved around 2,000 GW simulated in over 130 countries .
According to Mercom’s 9M & 3Q 2021 Solar Funding and M&A Report, as of 9M 2021, the solar industry raised $2.2 billion in VC funding in 39 deals, or 466% more than $394 million in 29 deals in the 9 months of 2020.
