California based Sungevity is the fifth-largest distributed solar installer in the U.S. already partners with E.ON Benelux and five years ago acquired Dutch rooftop solar provider Zonline. Electrabel is the Belgian unit of French utility Engie and has 2.8 million customers in Belgium.
Cooperation with Belgium`s largest utility
We are excited about growing our European footprint with ENGIE Electrabel, Belgium's largest utility,” said Jan Slaghekke, Chief Global Officer, Sungevity, Inc. “Their selection of Sungevity as a partner to address the burgeoning Belgian solar market further validates the strength of our technology platform and our focused approach to providing exceptional service to customers.”
Ambition to become market leader in energy transition
Philippe Van Troeye, CEO of ENGIE Benelux states: “The ENGIE Group is undertaking a major transformation and has the ambition to become the market leader in energy transition. The strategy of ENGIE Electrabel as an energy leader in Belgium is fully in line with this as we look to actively implement it for our customers.”
Return to modest market growth
The Belgian solar market contracted massively compared to previous boom times. Due to generous feed-in-tariffs yearly installations peaked with over 1 GW in 2011. After drastic FIT cuts they felt rapidly to 65 MW in 2014 and roughly 100 MW in 2015. However, with declined costs the market seems to return to modest growth especially in the residential sector. For this year 250 MW of new PV installations are expected in Belgium. Progressive cities like Middlekerke who invest strongly in rooftop solar also play an important role. (HCN)
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