Solexel, a US-based solar cell and module producer backed by solar panel maker SunPower and semiconductor technology provider Spirox, has secured $95m in funding from investors including King Saud University of Saudi Arabia.
The company confirmed the funding yesterday. It did not disclose the precise amount raised, but a regulatory filing in June suggests it has secured $95m from a series D round that reached its first close in July 2014.
King Saud University invested through its venture capital arm, Riyadh Valley Company, and joined the investors in the $31m first tranche, which included Spirox, roofing materials supplier GAF, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPCB), Technology Partners, DAG Ventures, Gentry Ventures, Northgate Capital, GSV Capital and Jasper Ridge Partners.
Solexel, which was founded in 2005 as Soltaix, produces lightweight solar photovoltaic cells and modules it claims deliver high-grade performance at a low cost.
The company raised $54.7m in a series C round that featured SunPower and that closed in 2013, after Solexel had secured $36.5m the year before.
The investors at the time of Solexel’s series B round were Spirox Ventures, which acts as Spriox’s investment arm, KPCB, Technology Partners, DAG Ventures, Gentry, Northgate, Ecofin, Oak Hill Investment Management, Westly Group and Univest. It previously raised $15m in 2007.
– Image courtesy of Solexel