Innovative Solutions for Extended Life of PV Modules

SOLARIMO is a subsidiary of ENGIE Deutschland GmbH that develops local power supply concepts based on photovoltaic energy. The company, founded in 2017, also focuses on sustainability in line with the corporate strategy "Zero Carbon Transition as a Service". In this context, the disposal of PV modules has been identified as a future-relevant issue.

ENGIE Group is a global reference in low-carbon energy and services. Together with our 96,000 employees, our customers, partners and stakeholders, we are committed to accelerate the transition towards a carbon-neutral world, through reduced energy consumption and more environmentally-friendly solutions. Inspired by our purpose (“raison d’être”), we reconcile economic performance with a positive impact on people and the planet, building on our key businesses (gas, renewable energy, services) to offer competitive solutions to our customers.

The ENGIE Group has an organization called "ENGIE Access" that promotes the electrification of developing countries. With knowledge of ENGIE Access, Solarimo came up with the idea of exploring meaningful second-life models for solar modules that are no longer economically viable for commercial operators like Solarimo but are still functional.

INNOVATE2030 is an international innovation program to address the sustainable development goals set by the UN. The program calls on students, researchers, young professionals, and startups to develop new ideas and solutions for the digital and sustainable future of our planet. Using real-world Challenges from established organizations, the goal is to solve real problems in a wide range of areas and develop innovations for added value in society. The participants receive support from experts and will work closely with the respective organizations that distributed the challenges.

Take a look at the tutorial: Join a Challenge!

#1 Register
First of all, you have to register on our platform. You can find a tutorial in the question "How to create an account on our platform and how to set it up?".

#2 Select the challenge 

Innovate2030 consists of various challenges. Scroll up, look over the challenges and choose the one you are interested in, by clicking on ‘more information’. You will find the complete challenge briefing. Read it thoroughly.

#3 Select options of participation 

There are different options as to how you can participate in our challenges: You can create a new team for the challenge, join an existing team or participate alone (for further information: Look at the next question).

#4 Submit your idea 

Develop or apply your ideas and approaches and submit them via our platform's challenge workspace before the given deadline has passed. Keep in mind that you have to submit the submission template in order to participate in the challenge.

Check out our tutorial: Get started! 

Every participant will always be able to use his or her own submissions to the full extent. Concerning the planned joint publication of all solutions, the final teams will only grant us the necessary rights so that we can publish the solution under a Creative Common License (non-commercial). In addition, all final teams agree to enter into discussions with the respective Challenge submitter within three months of the programs completion regarding possible further collaboration or further use of the submissions. During this period, the final teams also agree not to enter into discussions with third parties regarding further use of the solutions. All details can be found in the conditions of participation.

We are aware that your solution concepts are in different stages of development, and that's fine!

For all of you who are currently developing a solution concept:

For submission purposes, it is sufficient to describe your idea or approach in the Submission Template and upload it via our platform. A visualization of the approach (e.g., a sketch, visual design, or prototype) is beneficial - it should be as well-developed as possible, but appropriate to the time available. Remember that there will be an elaboration phase for the finalists of this competition, where you will further develop your submitted idea/approach.

For startups:

Does your business idea fit our challenge? Excellent! Then join us, and let's take the next steps together. You only need to fill out the submission template. Additionally, you can upload further materials, e.g., a pitch deck.

Our challenges are open to all types of participants! Please just follow the registration process and decide whether you would like to participate alone, as a startup, or as a team.