Netherlands-based solar company Esdec claimed in 2019 that the company holds 60% of the U.S. mounting market share in rooftop and residential sectors after the acquisition of three key American companies.
Esdec entered the U.S. solar mounting market in September 2018 with a single product solution: its FlatFix flat roof mount. The company came to the states with more than a decade of experience and several gigawatts of European solar.
Less than two months later, Esdec announced it acquired EcoFasten, a U.S. manufacturer with flat- and pitched-roof mounting solutions. Fast forward another 10 months, just days before Solar Power International 2019, and Esdec announced it acquired yet another two U.S. solar mounting companies: IronRidge and Quick Mount PV. The former carries both roof- and ground-mount systems, while Quick Mount PV focuses on rooftop solar.
“They have played a key role in scaling the U.S. solar industry to where it is today, and our investment adds the capital depth and R&D capabilities needed for them to lead the industry’s next massive phase of growth,” said Stijn Vos, CEO of Esdec.
From surveys taken for Solar Power World’s 2019 Top Solar Contractors list, 26% of respondents listed an Esdec-owned company as their preferred mounting solution. IronRidge was the outright leader overall in the mounting category, claiming 23% of the total responses alone, with Quick Mount and EcoFasten in single digits. Half of the companies participating in the survey marked that their primary solar market is residential.
According to a press release, Esdec arranged the acquisitions to better position itself for the predicted growth in U.S. solar over the next five years, which is estimated to double in size and to prepare for the uncertainties of trade policy. Quick Mount PV and IronRidge will still work as separate entities, just under the Esdec umbrella.
These three recently acquired mounting companies do hold a significant share of the market among solar contractors. However, there is still a wealth of independent solar mounting providers in the United States. Esdec’s swift entrance and acquisitions are notable, and if that 60% figure is true, the company still doesn’t hold the market influence that accompanies a total monopoly to dictate what direction domestic solar mounting is heading in.
“The American solar industry is among the strongest in the world and solar hardware is a critical tool in that growth,” said Yann Brandt, CEO of Quick Mount PV, in the acquisition press release. “Joining Esdec will help us continue our expansion — providing us the resources of a global company while maintaining our independence.”
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