Japan-based startup PXP Corporation, developer of lightweight and flexible solar cells, has raised a total of 1.5 billion yen (almost USD$10 million) in Series A funding, led by SoftBank Corp., with participation from SOLABLE Corporation, Kowa Optronics Co., Ltd., Toyota Tsusho Corporation, J&TC Frontier LLC (a joint investment vehicle between JFE Engineering Corporation and Tokyo Century Corporation), Automobile Fund Co., Ltd., Mitsubishi HC Capital Co., Ltd., Yokohama Capital Co., Ltd., and TARO Ventures. SoftBank has invested approximately 1 billion yen and acquired approximately 29.9% of PXP's shares.
The solar cell technology being developed by PXP has a tandem structure that combines perovskite solar cells and chalcopyrite solar cells, said to achieve more than 1.5 times the energy conversion efficiency (theoretical value: about 42%) of conventional solar cells. In addition, it is lightweight and flexible, weighing about one-tenth of conventional solar cells, and has high durability against shock and vibration. It can be installed in various locations depending on the application, and it is expected to reduce installation costs. PXP and SoftBank aim to use PXP's next-generation solar cells for various purposes, such as operating SoftBank's data center with green energy, in anticipation of future electricity demand.
Through the support of investment partners such as SoftBank, PXP aims to quickly commercialize and mass-produce these next-generation solar cells and implement them, accelerating the realization of PXP's goal of "a world where clean energy can be used freely by anyone, anytime, anywhere."
SoftBank is working to build the next-generation social infrastructure that is essential for the development of a digital society by procuring not only the data centers and computing infrastructure that will be needed in the future, but also the renewable energy required to operate data centers. PXP's lightweight, flexible, and highly efficient solar cells will enable data centers to run on clean energy by supplying power from solar panels installed in data centers. In addition, the solar cells are expected to be used for a variety of purposes, such as supplying power to portable base stations that are transported to disaster areas in the event of an emergency, and installing lightweight, thin, and highly efficient solar cells on the bodies of HAPS (High Altitude Platform Stations).
Tomoyuki Katsuta, Executive Officer and General Manager of Corporate Planning at SOLABLE, Inc., an existing shareholder that has supported PXP since its inception, said: "We established PXP in July 2020 with the aim of developing and popularizing next-generation solar cells with high conversion efficiency and groundbreaking properties such as being thin and flexible, and light and unbreakable, in order to realize a sustainable society. We have supported research and development to date. With companies and financial institutions that expect to benefit from PXP's technological capabilities and business development, as well as business synergies with PXP, becoming new shareholders, we hope that this will enable larger-scale research and development and accelerate the development and practical application of next-generation solar cells."
