Solar energy and water solutions provider Solar Energy Systems has taken what some may see as a step back into the more traditional solar energy business with the purchase of Welshpool-based solar hot water systems producer, Solco Industries.
SES announced on September 1 that it had completed a $2.5 million share placement to help fund the $3.15 million Solco acquisition and provide some money for general working capital.
That placement was closed early due to demand for the issue.
Taking a step back of a different sort is SES founder and WA Business News 40under40 winner Anthony Maslin, who has handed day-to-day responsibilities to new CEO Duncan Stone.
Mr Maslin remains as an executive director, however.
Mr Stone said the Solco business fitted with SES’s goal of making improvements to the environment, while also taking the company down the path towards profitability.
“About 38 per cent of all residential power is used to heat water, and solar heating helps reduce that,” he said.
“The Solco product is also very suitable to rural areas. It fits into our distribution network.”
Indeed, SES’s distribution network had already been selling the Solco hot water systems.
SES will be moving its entire business over from its Osborne Park headquarters to Solco’s Welshpool facilitiy.
“This will be a significant ramp-up in terms of scale for SES,” Mr Stone said. “We’ll be building an extra 200 square metres of office space there [Welshpool].”
Mr Maslin said he had initially thought the Solco move an odd one for the company.
“Now my view on it is it is incredibly complementary to what we do – water and power solutions,” he said.
“The piece of equipment works on the lowest lifecycle cost, so in terms of sustainability it’s a good fit.”
Mr Maslin said he had decided to step back from the daily running of SES to allow someone with new ideas to take over.
“Our profit performance was not what we wanted it to be. We relied solely on the Sun Mill. Now we have a range of products,” he told WA Business News.
Sales figures for the Sun Mill product have been lower than expected, largely due to the largest drought to hit the eastern States for 100 years.
Mr Maslin said he was still involved with the company as an executive director and would be driving its Maldives solar desalination project.
It’s planned for water from that plant to be sold to the locals, who currently buy their water from Coca Cola.
Mr Stone said the project had taken longer than expected but was still on track.
“We’ve been financed by Trivdos, which has provided $80,000 for the project,” he said.
“The equipment for the project is about 60 per cent complete.”
Solco industries began its corporate life in 1984 when a group of inventors developed a concept for a new style polymer-based one-piece solar hot water system that was low cost and low maintenance.
Working in conjunction with Curtin University the company spent more than $2 million developing its Solartech hot water system.
The company has established 14 manufacturing facilities, four in Australia and 10 in other countries in South-East Asia and Africa.
