Photon Energy Operations, a division of global lifecycle-oriented power solutions provider Photon Energy, is expanding its international operations & maintenance portfolio by signing maintenance contracts for Satcon inverters at power plants in Belgium.

Amsterdam (pta/28.01.2014/14:00) Photon Energy Operations is expanding its portfolio of O&M services in Belgium by signing service contracts for Satcon central inverters. The company is already providing full O&M services for a 3 MWp rooftop power plant near Brussels and is now gaining a foothold in the country. At the same time Photon Energy Operations is strengthening its position as a leading provider of maintenance services of Satcon central inverters thanks to former key Satcon staff with in-depth know-how and access to spare parts.

Photon Energy Operations, a division of global lifecycle-oriented power solutions provider Photon Energy, is expanding its international operations & maintenance portfolio by signing maintenance contracts for Satcon inverters at power plants in Belgium. The company already provides full O&M services for a 3 MWp rooftop power plant near Brussels and is active in six other countries across two continents.

The future for the Belgian PV sector has been described as cloudy in the European Photovoltaic Industry Association's Global market outlook for 2013-2017. "With a changing regulatory environment and reduced support for all PV segments in Belgium we are sure that investors will value our Uptime and Performance Guarantees and the fact, that power plants in our care show an uptime of more than 99% on average", says CEO Georg Hotar.

"We are also bringing our NPVmax - strategy to the Belgian market with which we are helping power plant owners to maximise the Net Present Value of their investments", explains Georg Hotar, CEO of Photon Energy. "With our full operations & maintenance services we are aiming at fundamentally de-risking PV power plants", he adds.

The central inverters are now in the hands of former key Satcon engineers who between them have commissioned over 130 MWp of Satcon inverters all over Europe. After the former manufacturer closed shop, Photon Energy Operations moved quickly and secured both key personnel and access to spare parts. "We are convinced that for investors, whose power plants run on Satcon-produced central inverters, Photon Energy Operations is the logical choice for O&M services", says Georg Hotar, CEO of Photon Energy. "Who else would you rather have taking care of your inverters than the people who actually installed them and know then inside out?" Hotar adds.

"If central inverters are not given regular check-ups and preventive maintenance, small failures can cause a domino effect that can lead to severe damage", explains Pavel Laurinec, Technical Manager Central Inverters at Photon Energy Operations. "Even a tiny issue such as a dirty filter can trigger further problems that lead to higher operating temperatures and premature failure of critical components resulting in extensive downtime", Laurinec elaborates. "In case an inverter does require corrective maintenance, we have access to all crucial spare parts and the knowledge to get it up and running as quickly as possible".

PRESS CONTACT
Jan Krcmar
T +420 773 032 182
E jan.krcmar@photonenergy.com

ABOUT PHOTON ENERGY OPERATIONS
Photon Energy Operations provides fully integrated monitoring and O&M services for PV power plants in Germany, Italy, Central Europe, Australia and a growing number of other countries. The company currently has over 60 MWp under management and its power plants operate almost entirely with an uptime above 99%, thanks to its advanced monitoring and management system. Photon Energy Operations also offers revenue enhancement services, uptime & performance guarantees and comprehensive insurance solutions. The company is part of Photon Energy Group, a global solar power solutions and services company based in the Netherlands.