ClearVue moves into residential market with solar glass tech

Perth-based solar glass manufacturer ClearVue has secured an order to supply eight of its PV skylights, as well as other non-solar windows and doors, as part of a $160,000 (USD 100,000) residential glazing project in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) suburb of Griffith.

The project is the first residential installation of the company’s transparent solar glass technology, which is designed to preserve glass transparency while generating electricity.

ClearVue’s head of investor relations Earle Harper said it will serve as a pivotal reference site for future residential and skylight projects, as well as applications both locally and globally.

“This sale represents the first use of the ClearVue product in a luxury residential project where the ClearVue product is being used in a skylighting application,” he said.

“The sale, while a sizeable order for a single residence project, more importantly, demonstrates the flexibility of the ClearVue PV glazing product across market categories and segments.

“It will provide yet another reference site for the company to demonstrate the skylight and residential market applicability for the product.”

ClearVue has previously deployed its solar glass products in various projects across the Asia-Pacific region including a park in Sydney, a shopping centre in Perth and greenhouses in Japan and Perth. The company has also conducted trials in multiple geographies to explore the energy efficiency and power performance of its products.

The Griffith project, which will include the installation of eight ClearVue solar PV powered skylights measuring 1.4 metres x 0.78 metres, is the company’s first foray into what it said is a particularly attractive market.

The skylight market is expected to grow to about $8.8 billion (USD 5.5 billion) by 2030, with a compound annualised growth rate of 15.3% from 2021 to 2030.

“Importantly, it’s a simpler sale for the company to support its commercialisation journey to sales of commercial building facade sales,” Harper said.

ClearVue said it has been actively promoting its products in the context of skylights and roof windows and is engaged in discussions with potential licensees in several jurisdictions for the right to manufacture and distribute its product for this specific application.

Work on the Griffith project has commenced and is anticipated to be completed by the end of February 2023.

The luxury home, designed by Hugh Gordon Architect, is being built by developer Custom Apartments in conjunction with specialist builders Elm Building Group.

Custom Apartments said it expects this will be the first of many times it utilises ClearVue’s solar glass technology in its projects.

“We at Custom Apartments strive to deliver the best customer experience in terms of liveability, leading technology and sustainability in all of our projects,” the company said. “We are looking forward to being able to specify the product into upcoming residential apartment projects that will benefit from the ClearVue products’ energy efficiency and energy generation aspects.”