• Xizan Energy launches the deployment of MY SOLAR PLANT—its portable solar generator to support Ukraine’s energy resilience
• Kyiv Polytechnic University hosts a public presentation event on March 11 to showcase Xizan’s technology as the exhibition lasts March 3rd through 11th
• Meetings are being planned to explore large-scale manufacturing opportunities in Ukraine

Tech4Good Global Challenge #1: Energy for Ukraine is proud to announce the deployment of MY SOLAR PLANT by Xizan Energy, an innovative dual-use solar generator invented by Luis Casla, to provide sustainable energy solutions in Ukraine. This initiative marks a significant step in supporting Ukraine’s energy infrastructure amid the ongoing crisis.

The Spanish company Xizan Energy developed MY SOLAR PLANT—a dual-use solar generator for use at home and wherever you go. The founder impressed Tech4Good with his energy, his immediate readiness to share his knowledge, and his eagerness to send his portable and sustainable energy solution to Ukraine as soon as tomorrow.

Amid ongoing Russian attacks that have severely impacted Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, Tech4Good launched a global initiative to identify and implement innovative energy solutions. The challenge attracted 75 submissions from around the world, with 6 cutting-edge projects selected to enhance Ukraine’s energy resilience. These solutions include biomass-powered energy systems, micro wind turbines, and portable solar generators.

More about MY SOLAR PLANT

ITKeyMedia approached Xizan Energy’s founder, CEO, and CTO Luis Casla to dive deeper into what his solution has to offer:

ITKeyMedia: How did the idea for XIZAN’s My Solar Plant come to be? What was the inspiration behind its development?

Luis Casla: I started to use and test solar PV technology about 10 years ago when I was working for another company. All elements were super-inefficient and heavy and that inspired me to try to make new designs more efficient and easier to use.

ITKM: What challenges did your team face while developing the solar generator, and how were they overcome?

LC: The development of a self-supporting structure with a 2-axes sun tracker, that had to be light and foldable, was a huge challenge from many aspects: mechanical, industrial design, electronics, HW and SW. The key to overcoming the challenge was to implement an iterative improvement process for which 14 prototypes requiring each several months of work along several years had to be developed. The development of the BOX has been another challenging activity that has required a lot of research in many new technological fields.

ITKM: What are the key differences between XIZAN’s My Solar Plant and traditional solar panels?

LC: As opposed to traditional panels built with heavy structures to be used in roofs, MY SOLAR PLANT panels make use of semi-flexible cells technology that lighten the weight of panels up to 80%. The use of this semi-flexible technology is currently finding application only in portable solar systems where panels’ resistance is not demanded by regulatory protocols. What makes our panels really innovative is the fact our panels together with our specific structures can be used not just in portable mode but also in rooftop home mode as traditional ones, complying with the highly demanding regulatory protocols in terms of resistance.

ITKM: Can you elaborate on the materials used in the solar panels and how they contribute to their lightweight and foldable design?

LC: The use of semi-flexible cells allows building them in thin flexible multi-layer panels, normally comprising EVA encapsulation with a TPT backsheet and ETFE covering. Since the cells have a bending tolerance the thickness of the panel can be reduced to less than 2mm making the panels super-light. The foldable design is not driven by the materials but rather by the simple need to make the panels easy to handle and transport.

ITKM: How do the semi-flexible panels adapt to different environments and weather conditions?

LC: In each environment we use different adaptive structures that respond to specific conditions. When using the panels in portable mode our self-supporting structures allow their placement and operability. In rooftop mode our adaptive design is based on crossbeams assembled to commercial aluminum profiles to provide the highly demanded resistance of regulatory protocols.

ITKM: What are the key advantages of XIZAN’s modular battery system compared to competitors in the market?

LC: Our batteries’ modularity is specifically designed to be used in both portable and home mode. In order to achieve this, our batteries include 2 lateral connection boxes for connectivity by cable. In portable mode batteries are piled one in front of the other and the connection is done by cable using the same side connection boxes. In home mode, batteries are mounted on the wall side-by-side and connected by cable using the adjacent connection boxes.

ITKM: Could you explain the decision to make the Power BOX separable and how it improves user experience?

LC: Battery modules and the inverter in the Power BOX are the heavy part of the system since they reach 20 and 10kg respectively. The separability of them allows a much easier transportation since instead of transporting 30kg in one go, you can do it in 2 steps with a maximum of 20kg. Some current compact solutions in the market can reach 50kg and of course include wheels and handles to ease transport, but it makes it really difficult when climbing stairs or when having to load them in the trunk of a car for example.

ITKM: How does the 2-axis tracker increase the performance of the system? What are the metrics and what specific performance gains does it offer?

LC: The improvement of performance of a 2-axes sun tracker depends on the latitude and the altitude. According to our research in perfect irradiation conditions with no obstacles the improvement with respect to panels in the most optimal fixed position varies as a reference from 73.91% in Narvik, Norway (latitude 70ºN, altitude 0) to 44,5% in Dakar, Senegal (latitude 20ºN, altitude 0). As another reference with altitude the improvement in Madrid, Spain (latitude 40.5N, altitude 690m) is 49.55%.

ITKM: What are the expected long-term environmental benefits of using XIZAN’s solar generators over traditional fossil-fuel-based generators?

LC: As a quick reference, fuel generators’ emissions can reach 2.3kg CO2/kWh. A 1kW solar generator reaching an average of 1800kWh per year would save 1800*2.3 = 4.14 Tn of CO2 emissions per year.

ITKM: Can MY SOLAR PLANT be scaled for larger industrial applications, or is it primarily designed for residential and small-scale use?

LC: MY SOLAR PLANT structural design is specifically designed for nominal powers that can reach 1.5kW in portable mode and 3kW in home mode, so it’s limited for residential and small businesses scales.

ITKM: What specific challenges does XIZAN face in manufacturing, and how do you plan to address them in Ukraine?

LC: Industrial manufacturing is complex. In order to make it simple, in our first iteration we are focused on trying to contact battery manufacturers with experience in the whole industrialization process of these elements who could be interested in implementing and adapting a manufacturing plan for our BOX using their own procedures.

ITKM: How do you envision the local manufacturing process working in Ukraine, and what role do you see for Ukrainian companies in this initiative?

LC: We don’t know Ukrainian manufacturing capacities in the particular industries of solar energy generation and storage in batteries, and we travel to Ukraine with great interest in knowing whether we can find first a demand for our system to help people, and secondly whether the manufacturing and commercialization at least in certain stages of the manufacturing chain can be done locally by Ukrainian companies to support their national economy.

ITKM: How do you ensure the ease of use and maintenance for end-users, particularly those with limited technical expertise?

LC: Product documentation support based on detailed manuals of use, together with videos demonstrating all operation activities will be key to make sure our customers will be able to quickly complete a training period, and become experts in the full operation of the system.

ITKM: What steps are being taken to validate the technology’s performance in real-world conditions?

LC: Our validation procedure starts at laboratory level with local tests performed in all subparts of the system, followed by system tests where high level functionalities are tested with all subparts fully integrated. The validation in real world conditions comes next, and for that purpose we select specific use cases in real field-tests that we first test ourselves and after that we do it with early adopters who can provide valuable feedback. This process is repeated the number of iterations that are necessary to meet the acceptance requirements previously defined.

ITKM: How do you plan to keep the costs affordable while maintaining high performance, especially in emerging markets like Ukraine?

LC: The final cost of the product still contains uncertainties that will be resolved only when a complete industrialization plan is implemented. Nevertheless, we have solutions at design and construction level that are advantageous with respect to our reference competitors in the field of portable solar systems.

ITKM: What other countries or regions do you see as potential markets for My Solar Plant after Ukraine?

LC: The market with highest potential for our full system is the US, and Europe, India and China might come next. If we succeed in Ukraine the strategy on how to proceed entering the mentioned markets will have to be defined because many business factors will have to be taken into consideration.

ITKM: How do you measure the impact of your solar generator on energy resilience in crisis situations like Russia’s war against Ukraine?

LC: A close communication with customers to provide support and evaluate their satisfaction will be very important to get a quick validation of the specific use cases applied.

See presentation to find out more about how Xizan Energy’s MY SOLAR PLANT works.

Get in Touch with Xizan Energy Personally

With the support of the Embassy of Ukraine in the Kingdom of Spain and Sikorsky Challenge Innovation Holding, the deployment of Xizan Energy’s solution will take place in Kyiv from March 3 to 13. This project is being implemented in collaboration with the Innovation Holding Sikorsky Challenge at the Kyiv Polytechnic Institute (KPI).

Meetings are scheduled with energy companies, resource-saving enterprises, and solar panel manufacturers to explore the large-scale production of MY SOLAR PLANT in Ukraine. On March 11, KPI will host a public exhibition of Xizan’s technology, inviting media, industry partners, and manufacturers to discuss the potential for joint licensed serial production. This initiative aligns with Ukraine’s broader strategy for energy resilience and independence during crisis situations.

Tech4Good Challenge is actively progressing with additional groundbreaking energy projects focusing on resilient energy solutions.