As the transportation industry increasingly prioritizes sustainability, solar panels on trucks are becoming a more interesting solution for truck fleets across Europe. IM Efficiency, an innovative tech scale-up at the Automotive Campus in the Dutch city of Helmond, recently succeeded in raising funding in a round led by the Brabantse Ontwikkelings Maatschappij (BOM), Rockstart, and other investors. The investment, the amount of which was not disclosed, will be used to accelerate the commercial rollout of ‘SolarOnTop’.
The onboard solar technology is designed specifically for trucks and trailers to reduce fuel consumption and carbon footprint. With some 50 SolarOnTop installations currently on the road in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, and Hungary, the investment is used to meet growing market demand. In addition, IM Efficiency is using the funding to complete the development of new onboard solar technologies for various applications.
With sustainability playing an increasing role in the transportation industry and regulations, the demand for solar technology solutions on vehicles is rapidly increasing. The truck and trailer market offers significant growth opportunities, with an estimated several million trailers in the European Union.
SolarOnTop
Because heavy trucks require expensive and polluting methods to generate electricity, IM Efficiency has addressed this problem with SolarOnTop, an onboard solar technology that generates electricity from solar panels. According to the inventors, the SolarOnTop reduces fuel consumption by 1,000 to 3,000 gallons of diesel per truck annually. When the truck is parked, the technology powers the cab’s electronics so they do not have to idle. The SolarOnTop also powers electrical equipment in the trailer and reduces the negative impact of the alternator on fuel consumption while driving.
There are also applications where the SolarOnTop provides the trailer with the electricity it needs, allowing it to be used more reliably in logistics operations and become independent of the tractor. With the further developments that IM Efficiency is doing, these benefits are extended to electric trucks and other large consumers, which can increase the electric range with the sun’s power. In this way, IM Efficiency’s solutions contribute to the environment and bring financial benefits to fleets and the transportation industry.
IM Efficiency is represented in markets such as Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium and is a founding member of the Alliance for Solar on Mobility (ASOM), an organization that aims to promote the use of solar energy on all types of vehicles.
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