18/02/2020

OpenSys Technologies today announced a new online marketplace for solar products, aptly named BuySolar. According to the team, this is Malaysia’s first one-stop online marketplace, and the platform aims to provide consumers with an easy, one-stop solution for solar energy products—along with financing options.

BuySolar is also supported by Sustainable Energy Development Authority (SEDA) Malaysia, along with subsidiaries of Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB), GSPARX and TNBX. CIMB Bank, meanwhile, fills the role of financier, with “green loans” offered.

In essence, the platform is an end-to-end solution provider, which means that installation services, selection, quotation, maintenance, and after-sales service is offered. Additionally, an online dashboard of sorts is available, which will help users to monitor the amount of solar energy used, as well as other relevant information

According to Luke Sebastian, Chief Operating Officer of OpenSys Technologies, the platform will fill a void for consumers, explaining that finding reliable installers and financing options can be difficult for the average Malaysian customer:

“Sourcing for reliable solar panel installers and getting the right financing option can be challenging for Malaysian customers because of the complexity of the process and lack of awareness of the trusted financing partner.”

Technology, according to Luke, is the main thing here. The Malaysian government aims to achieve the 20% renewable energy target by 2025, and BuySolar aims to bring new technologies to the solar energy industry: namely, Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data, and e-commerce.

YBrs. Ir. Dr. Sanjayan Velautham, CEO of SEDA Malaysia, commended BuySolar for helping to grow the renewable energy industry in Malaysia—and for being part of the effort to facilitate more Malaysians to get involved with renewable energy:

“SEDA Malaysia has been continuously promoting various programmes such as Feed-in Tariff (FiT) and the enhanced NEM programme (NEM 2.0) to support the Government’s aspiration of achieving 20% renewable energy target in the elctricity mix by 2025.”

Meanwhile, financing is provided by CIMB with RM100 million allocated towards initiatives for renewable energy financing. For consumers, you get up to 100% of the cost of “acquiring and installing” the tech—generally speaking, financing will be from RM20,000 to RM1 million.

Vendors and solar services providers are “carefully selected” by OpenSys Technologies, and according to the folks over at OpenSys, customers can expect energy savings of 54% to 87%. At the moment, one of the bigger entry barriers to utilising solar energy for consumers is the high upfront costs of acquiring, and installing solar panel technology. It appears that financing could solve that particular issue, although awareness on the benefits of solar energy and the need for renewable energy is certainly needed.

Source: SoyaCincau