Australian solar company receives global award

Australian solar technology company RayGen Resources has received the Grand Prize in the 2014 Global CleanTech Cluster Association (GCCA) Later Stage Awards.

The GCCA winners were selected by a panel of investors at the 5th annual CleanTech Investing Seminar in Lausanne, Switzerland. After winning the solar/wind category, RayGen claimed the overall award for its proven track record in its home market, its international expansion plans and its strong investment credentials. Value-capture in its chosen industry also helped propel RayGen to the coveted top prize.

The win comes on the back of a recent breakthrough for solar’ s potential to become the world’s primary power source, following recent tests by the University of New South Wales (UNSW) and RayGen that produced the world’s highest-ever rate of efficiency for the conversion of sunlight into electricity. The researchers have converted over 40% of the sunlight hitting a solar system into electricity - the highest efficiency ever reported. The efficiency was achieved in outdoor tests in Sydney, before being independently confirmed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) at its outdoor test facility in the United States.

“The sector is making great strides and we believe there’s a very real possibility that home-grown CSPV technology can achieve $1 billion in exports by the end of the decade,” said RayGen Chairman and CEO Bob Cart.

This year’s GCCA Later Stage Awards were adjudicated by an extensive list of venture capital and cleantech judges representing more than $3.5 billion invested in the clean technology sector internationally. The event ceremony, held in Lausanne, Switzerland, brings together the very best game-changing technologies and entrepreneurs with a range of cleantech investors, corporate investors and family offices.