- Pierre-Pascal Urbon, ex-CEO of SMA Solar Technology AG, has been appointed the new chairman of the battery startup’s advisory board.
- Urbon will provide support for the expansion of operations abroad.
- The goal is for instagrid to become an international driving force in off-grid energy storage technology.
Ludwigsburg, 17/03/2021 – Battery manufacturer instagrid has welcomed a proven expert of the energy transition and an experienced manager to the company. Pierre-Pascal Urbon (50), former CEO of SMA Solar Technology AG, has taken over as chairman of the advisory board. instagrid plans to draw on his experience and international network to press ahead with further expansion.
Urbon was a board member of SMA Solar from 2006 to 2018 and was responsible for its strategic alignment from 2011 onwards as CEO. At the world’s leading manufacturer of photovoltaic and battery inverter technology, Urbon established the international retail and service branches, developed an innovative specialist tradesman programme and formed numerous strategic partnerships. As CEO and CFO, Urbon has been steering ICT service provider KOMSA AG towards the new growth areas of professional managed services and circular economy since 2020.
New chairman of the advisory board to provide support to founding duo
As chairman of the advisory board, Urbon will support instagrid’s management team headed by successful founding duo Andreas Sedlmayr and Sebastian Berning in the formulation of an internationalisation strategy and the development of suitable retail and service infrastructure. His contacts with decision-makers in industry and politics as well as with key players in renewable energy will be important for instagrid’s continued growth.
“There are strong parallels between instagrid and SMA Solar. With their team, Andreas and Sebastian have developed a technology that makes it possible to replace dirty diesel generators with clean battery power for the first time. The technology can be used in many areas of application and easily scaled up abroad. I look forward to working with the highly innovative instagrid team and its top-notch investors,” says Urbon, commenting on his new role.
“We are delighted to have Pierre join the team. As CEO, Pierre shaped SMA into a leading solar inverter manufacturer,” says Andreas Sedlmayr, co-founder and co-CEO of instagrid. “His wealth of experience and his confidence in the global potential of our solution will give us a boost for our next growth phase. Together, we intend to make our development towards sustainable smart power supply accessible to everyone around the world.”
Portable, clean energy supply
instagrid founding duo Andreas Sedlmayr and Sebastian Berning can look to the future with optimism. The use of battery technology for energy storage is crucial to a carbon-free energy supply. As the only provider to date, instagrid has succeeded in supplying power, as if from the grid, using a mobile, easily portable model. The innovative solution enables users around the world to take advantage of renewable energy at full power, regardless of their location. The portable batteries facilitate the reliable and efficient operation of electrical machines and equipment on construction sites, as well as in landscaping and gardening, the events industry, catering and the public sector, including in medical care.
International rolloutinstagrid has already reached an important milestone by delivering the first products to customers in the first quarter of 2021. The battery start-up will leverage strategic brand partnerships with major manufacturers of tools for construction sites as it seeks to rapidly expand into the other European markets. The next step will be to scale up the technology for other areas of application. “The goal is for instagrid to become an international driving force in off-grid energy storage technology,” explains Sebastian Berning, co-founder and co-CEO of instagrid.
