Image credits: Otovo
Otovo, an Oslo-based online marketplace for residential solar and battery installations, announced on Tuesday that it has raised €30M in a funding round led by a solar investor Axel Johnson with participation from existing investors.
Axel Johnson builds and develops profitable trade and service businesses in the European market, with a focus on the Nordic countries.
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Fund utilisation
Otovo claims it will use the capital to accelerate entry to six new markets within the next 12 months to strengthen its leading position in Europe.
The company is currently operational in seven markets – France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Poland, Spain, and Sweden.
With entry to new countries, Otovo is expected to address markets where approximately 2,000,000 new customers go solar every year by 2024.
“We are increasingly confident in our ability to launch in new markets. Poland, Italy, and Germany were launched in 12 months. We are present in seven countries, and have six to eight additional attractive markets in our sights for the next year, year-and-a-half,” says Andreas Thorsheim, Otovo’s Chief Executive Officer.
Otova: What you need to know
Founded by Andreas Bentzen, Andreas Thorsheim, Lars Syse Christiansen, and Simen Fure Jorgensen in 2016, Otovo is a pan-European marketplace for residential solar installations and batteries.
The marketplace organises a network of more than 500 local, high-quality energy installers that have been vetted thoroughly.
The Norwegian company uses its proprietary technology to analyse the potential of any home and finds the best price and installer for customers based on an automatic bidding process between available installers.
“Our competitors are typically single-market players. We are probably the fastest-growing player in the market, and we aim to be the first to have a full continental, pan-European presence. The idea is that the new markets will enable us to grow even faster, get increased volume advantages, unlock unique partnerships, reduce the cost of capital for our subscription business and close attractive equipment deals”, adds Thorsheim.
Currently, Otovo has more than 12,000 customers and expects to add 10,000 new customers in 2022. Otovo is listed on the Euronext Growth Exchange in Oslo, with a market capitalisation of €200M.
So far, major investors in the company include Scandinavian industrial group and investor Axel Johnson, Agder Energy Ventures (a clean energy company that invests in the development of renewable energy solutions of the future), Akershus Energi (broad-based energy company that invests in renewable energy), Nysnø (investors in eSmart Systems and Z.E.G), and KLP (Norway’s largest pension company).
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