Dyesol signs agreement with UK innovation centre

Dyesol has signed an agreement with SPECIFIC, an open innovation centre managed by Swansea University in the UK. The centre focuses on the development and commercialisation of functional coatings, recently heralded as having the potential to create a £100 (AU$181.4) billion industry.

The agreement plays a critical role in Dyesol’s plans to establish a commercial base in the United Kingdom to develop, manufacture and distribute its solid-state DSC technology.

Dyesol has become a Technology Partner of SPECIFIC. This status provides Dyesol with access to SPECIFIC’s network of open innovation partners for the purpose of utilising and developing its proposed photovoltaic products. Partners include academic institutions and multinational building materials giants.

“We are extremely encouraged by the latest commercial developments in the UK. Dyesol has been intensely focused on the development of its revolutionary technology over the past 7 years and it looks forward to realising its vision of bringing third-generation PV to the UK and European markets. This technology is versatile and the possibilities for commercialisation are vast,” said Chris Moore, project leader - steel.

Dyesol’s milestone-based Technology Development Plan is currently on schedule. Key targets are the development of large area prototypes by 2016, pilot line production by 2017 and mass production by 2018. Glass followed by steel are its preferred substrates, allowing access to almost the entire building envelope. The company is currently revising its business plan to include the latest developments. Very significantly, Dyesol expects its revised product range to address opportunities in both freestanding and BIPV installations. It is currently conducting detailed cost analysis, but expects its solid-state DSC technology to compete very favourably with poly- and mono-crystalline silicon, especially in low light climates, thereby adding substantially to its commercial potential.

The advent of solid-state DSC, which utilises an exciting class of sensitiser compounds known as perovskites, has provided the third generation of PV with a competitive edge in terms of lowering costs and enhancing durability or product life. Dyesol intends to inform the market of its detailed competitive Levelised Cost of Electricity (LCOE) analysis once it is complete and validated.