Groupe E and Capital Risque Fribourg invest in g2e

Groupe E - Number One in electricity distribution in the French-speaking part of Switzerland - and Capital Risque Fribourg SA are joining the company as shareholders. The Federal Polytechnic School of Lausanne (EPFL) is taking a small participation in connection with the grant of a license for the technology developed by Prof. Grätzel, on which the g2e products are based. CPA Group, a holding company which promotes the development of high-tech industrial companies based at Villaz-St-Pierre (Fribourg canton) will soon complete the shareholding structure of g2e.

Strategy confirmed
The arrival of these new shareholders validates the g2e strategy by endorsing the choice of the technology invented at the EPFL. This invention holds out the potential for unprecedented applications and design opportunities. The panels developed by g2e are transparent, colored and not sensitive to shade; they are efficient on both sides, even in indoor use, and can be installed vertically. As an example, this enables panels to be placed within the structure of building façades, adding electricity generating function to the glazing fitted in buildings.

«The arrival of Groupe E Is a key stage in our development because of its expertise and established position on the electricity market,» Stefan A. Müller, CEO of g2e points out. Philippe Virdis, member of the Groupe E Board and former Chief Executive Officer of that company, has also been elected to join the g2e Board.

Apart from the closer ties established with Groupe E, the support given by Capital Risque Fribourg SA, a tool for the economic promotion of the canton which provides financing for innovative companies based in the canton, encouraged the g2e shareholders to approve the transfer of the company to the Vivier Technology Park at Villaz-St-Pierre, near Romont in the autumn of this year. This transfer to a region in which many specialists in the glass industry and in automation are concentrated holds out new opportunities for cooperation, for instance with the highly qualified member companies of the CPA Group or with the Smart Living Lab launched by the EPFL, Fribourg University and School of Engineers and Architects; this laboratory will help to finalize technologies for use in the intelligent buildings of tomorrow.

Projects with the academic world
The arrival of the EPFL consolidates the natural ties which g2e has maintained since its inception with this institution via the technology for which g2e has developed unique industrial know-how. The cutting-edge competencies developed not only by the EPFL and HEIG-VD at Yverdon-les-Bains but also within Fribourg University and School of Engineers and Architects are of great interest to g2e and will pave the way for further projects.

Increased production capacities
These developments enable g2e to look forward to 2013 and future years with great optimism. The transfer to Villaz-St-Pierre will enable the company to envisage an increase in its industrial production capacities so as to be in a position to handle incoming orders if the business continues to progress in line with the forecasts. Last April, g2e delivered its first panels to Geneva International Airport (AIG). These panels now equip the balustrades of one of the walkways in the main hall of the airport. Deliveries to further clients are scheduled this summer.

About g2e
g2e glass2energy sa is a Swiss company incorporated at the end of 2011 to industrialize the Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells (DSSC) technology – developed by the laboratory of Professor Grätzel at the EPFL and winner of the Millennium 2010 prize – the equivalent of the Nobel prize in the field of technology. The management team consists of Stefan A. Müller (CEO) and Asef Azam (CTO/COO). The company has several prominent shareholders in the fields of construction, energy and technology. They include Swisscom, Sottas, Fibag (Austria), Société Suisse des Explosifs, Groupe E and Capital Risque Fribourg.