With increasing focus on the environment and governments getting more and more involved in curbing the depletion of nonrenewable energy sources, solar power companies have come to the foreground. One such name is energy roof maker systaic AG. Broadly speaking, the Düsseldorf, Germany-based company has four divisions:
systaic stands apart from its peers in the conventional PV industry. The company uses its own technology and has an early start as a provider of energy roofs for homeowners and of photovoltaic sunroofs for the automotive industry. systaic has already inked numerous cooperation agreements in the energy roof business. In this business, the company offers complete solutions to its clients, from designing to maintenance. While systaic deserves much applause for its head-start in the automotive industry, this division has only one direct customer, namely Webasto AG. The overdependence on Webasto is definitely an area of concern.
The segment that generates the maximum profits is the Solar Power Plant division. The company is currently working on two large projects in this segment. It is setting up three solar power plants in Cordoba in southern Spain. Sales associated with this project are expected to exceed €130 million this year. The company has also bagged an order from Colonia Real Estate, sales of which are estimated at up to €100 million. Hence, systaic is poised to beat its sales guidance of €200 million for 2008.
The company has made a mark for itself in the domestic market and in Spain. Now it has plans to extend its business model to other nations in Europe, such as France, Italy, Portugal and Greece. systaic is also poised to benefit from the rising trend among governments to encourage the use of solar power.