- Midsummer has announced the completion of a solar roof project in Bangladesh that uses its BOLD panels
- This installation is expected to generate 60,000 kWh annually to power Pioneer Knitwears’ textile factory
- The project has been financed by an unidentified global clothing retail chain that aims to become climate-neutral throughout its value chain
One of the world’s largest clothing retail chains has financed the installation of a solar roof for its supplier Pioneer Knitwears in Bangladesh using Swedish thin-film solar technology producer Midsummer’s BOLD model. It is part of the chain’s aim to become climate-neutral throughout its value chain.
While the global company has not been identified, textile producer Pioneer lists H&M and Target among its buyers on its website.
For this project, Midsummer has supplied its ultra-light and flexible BOLD solar panels that are 2 millimeters thin and weigh 3 kg/sq. m. These are designed to be installed without any reinforcement of the roof, thus lowering costs. It claims walking on these panels does not damage them.
“This type of roof cannot withstand the weight of silicon solar cells and the lion’s share of all roofs lack solar panels,” said Midsummer CEO Sven Lindström. “As the power supply often takes place with the factories’ own gas turbines or diesel generators, the environmental gain is huge when factories like this can instead be supplied with the world’s most durable solar panel.”
For the Pioneer textile factory in Mymensingh, Midsummer’s solar roof covers a 500 sq. m. area and is expected to generate around 60,000 kWh annually. Pioneer sees the solar panels to help it reduce electricity bills and minimize the use of fuel and production costs.
Lindström adds, “In the future, we will see many similar installations where global brands finance ‘green’ solutions for their suppliers to make their value chain climate neutral or climate positive. The customers and owners will simply demand it.”
