Korean climate tech startup SOLATOZ has secured funding from Seoul Techno Holdings. SOLATOZ upcycles waste solar panels into high-value agricultural infrastructure through two key innovations. First, the company extracts glass from expired or underperforming solar panels and transforms it using proprietary surface contamination removal and nanostructure treatment technologies into “eco-reinforced glass.” This glass delivers over 4% higher light transmission than conventional glass while offering anti-contamination and self-cleaning properties.

Second, reusable aged panels get remanufactured into “eco-solar panels” that restore over 90% of original power output with added anti-contamination features.

This approach breaks from traditional methods of simply crushing or landfilling waste solar panels. By upcycling them into high-value products for building energy-self-sufficient eco-glass greenhouses, SOLATOZ has created an innovative circular resource model.

The investment arrives as waste solar panel disposal demands spike from installations that took off in the early 2000s. Seoul Techno Holdings saw strong market potential in SOLATOZ’s “circular resource-based innovative agricultural infrastructure for climate disaster response,” especially as Korea’s Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) system for waste solar panels launched in 2023.

SOLATOZ’s energy-self-sufficient eco-glass greenhouses deliver superior durability compared to conventional vinyl greenhouses. The high-performance light-diffusing eco-reinforced glass, surface-treated with functional nanomaterials, boosts crop productivity and cuts energy costs while providing climate resilience to shield crops from extreme weather swings.

CEO Seung-hwan Mok of Seoul Techno Holdings explained the investment reasoning: “With domestic waste solar panels expected to hit tens of thousands of tons annually after 2026, we saw that this team is tackling the structural challenges of declining profitability from aging power plants and waste panel disposal through technology.”

With this funding, SOLATOZ will speed up refinement of its solar panel waste conversion technology while teaming up with local governments and public institutions to roll out economically viable energy-self-sufficient “eco-glass greenhouse” demonstration models nationwide. The company also plans to aggressively expand its public and B2B market footprint to capture rising smart agriculture demand.

CEO Seong-ho Hwang of SOLATOZ emphasized that waste solar panels aren’t expensive burdens but valuable resources that can transform agriculture’s future. “Leveraging Seoul Techno Holdings’ partnership, we’ll pioneer sustainable agricultural infrastructure solutions with economics that make immediate adoption possible for local governments and farms.”