Great British Energy has invested £8.875m into Naked Energy, the British solar thermal innovator.
The investment, made alongside Barclays Climate Ventures, will fund a new UK automated manufacturing facility for Naked Energy’s Virtu solar-thermal and PVT technology, creating up to 40 direct skilled jobs and around 100 indirect roles.
Naked Energy’s solar thermal technology is already cutting bills and reducing gas at some of the UK’s most recognised commercial and public-sector sites, including the British Library and the All England Lawn Tennis Club, Wimbledon.
Great British Energy and Naked Energy also intend to explore how Virtu could be deployed across suitable public-sector buildings, including potential financing models that would enable organisations to adopt renewable heat without bearing the full upfront capital cost.
Heat decarbonisation remains one of the most technically and commercially challenging components of the UK’s net zero commitments. Industrial and commercial heat accounts for a significant share of the UK’s remaining fossil fuel dependency, and in many buildings and processes, gas continues to be used for hot water, space heating and process heat at temperatures that alternatives such as heat pumps cannot always efficiently serve. Naked Energy’s Virtu technology addresses this gap by generating renewable heat directly at the point of use, displacing gas demand without adding electrical load to constrained grid connections and providing operators with a more stable, predictable alternative to volatile fossil fuel pricing.
Dan McGrail, CEO of Great British Energy, said: “Cutting our reliance on gas is one of the biggest challenges we face, both for energy security and for keeping bills down. Naked Energy has developed a technology that tackles this head on and when you see it working at iconic UK institutions like the British Library and Wimbledon, you understand what is possible.
“At Great British Energy we are backing UK innovators like Naked Energy and helping to create skilled jobs. Through our Energy Engineered in the UK programme we are helping them to manufacture here at home and go further, faster.”
The location of the UK manufacturing facility is still to be determined but when operational, will reduce Naked Energy’s production costs and support its continued growth in domestic and international markets.
Naked Energy’s proprietary Virtu product range includes high-density solar thermal systems capable of generating renewable heat up to 120 degrees Celsius and hybrid solar PVT systems that generate both heat and electricity from the same rooftop footprint. The company holds more than 20 patents and is the first manufacturer of an evacuated hybrid solar PVT collector to receive TÜV Rheinland certification, providing independent third-party verification of the technology’s performance and efficacy.
Its unique, low-profile design allows for around 85% of roof space to be used for energy generation, compared to a typical rate of 50% for conventional titled solar panels that require spacing between rows to avoid self-shading.
This means more energy can be generated from the same space, making it especially useful in cities and on commercial buildings with limited roof space.
Virtu was the only solar energy technology to receive planning permission at the British Library, a Grade I listed building.
Beyond its core hardware, Naked Energy is developing a wider renewable-heat platform, including digital tools for system design, performance monitoring and Heat-as-a-Service solutions. This enables customers and partners to design, deploy, operate and verify renewable heat systems more efficiently, supporting faster adoption across commercial, industrial and public-sector buildings. When paired with heat pumps and other low-carbon heating technologies, Virtu can improve overall system efficiency and support hybrid renewable heat generation without placing additional demand on grid connections — an increasingly important consideration for sites with constrained capacity.
Learn more: https://www.gbe.gov.uk/
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