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5B announces $33.4 million tech innovation program to accelerate delivery of ultra low cost solar

Jan 18, 2022

5B, a pioneer in prefabricated, rapidly deployable solar solutions, today announced a $33.4 million technology innovation program to accelerate its delivery of massive scale ultra low cost solar energy for Australia and the world.

The program will be supported by a $14 million grant by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) to help fund the project, under ARENA’s Advancing Renewables Program (ARP).

The powerful 5B Maverick™ solution can deploy up to 10 times faster and can generate up to twice the energy using the same amount of land as conventional solar.*

5B’s Maverick solution is currently cost-competitive in a number of markets both within Australia and globally. This program is designed to leverage advanced automation to dramatically improve the scalability and cost of 5B’s solution, enabling end customers to benefit from clean, solar energy at AUD30 cents per watt installed by 2030.

Roughly two-thirds of the $33.4 million investment will be directed towards the design and construction of a highly automated Advanced Manufacturing Pilot Line (AMPL). The other third will see robots installing 5B’s solar arrays using GPS-guided deployment (GGD) technology. Artificial intelligence-enabled solar installation represents a major advance in solar energy technology, making it faster, lower cost, more efficient and safer to construct new solar farms.

5B Chief Operating Officer Nicole Kuepper-Russell says: “This program will drive a step change in our automation capability and enable local manufacturing in Australia. We are grateful for ARENA’s support – investment like this is essential to realise the opportunity to build Australia’s reputation as a clean energy superpower, exporting cutting edge clean technology to the world.”