Poland’s Menlo Electric secures EUR 6M in funding from mBank to accelerate international expansion
Menlo Electric, one of the fastest-growing PV wholesalers in Europe, announces it has signed a EUR 6m funding agreement with mBank, Poland’s leading commercial bank. Coupled with financing obtained earlier this year, this brings Menlo Electric to 60% of its 2022 goal of raising EUR 20m of growth financing.
Thanks to the new funding from mBank, Menlo Electric will be able to serve new markets and expand outside of Europe. First deliveries to Lebanon are scheduled for later this month.
The agreement is a part of a broader mBank’s renewable financing effort.
Menlo Electric has also signed distribution agreements in excess of EUR 100m for 2022, offering equipment from market leaders such as Jinko, JA Solar, Risen, SolarEdge, FoxESS and Sungrow.
The company’s growth is supported by R.Power Renewables, Europe’s leading PV developer with 6 GW of farm projects in development, which acquired Menlo Electric in 2021. This has allowed the company to expand its operations significantly.
Additionally, Menlo Electic has already built a strong presence across Europe’s fastest-growing renewable markets. Many of them are Central and Eastern European countries that have a lot of catching up to do when it comes to moving away from fossil fuels. War in Ukraine has made accelerating energy transition an even stronger priority for them.
Marcin Ślęzak, Menlo Electric’s Chief Commercial Officer commented:
“In a world of supply chain disruptions, ensuring constant availability of top-quality equipment requires appropriate working capital funding.”
Adam Pers, mBank’s deputy CEO responsible for corporate and investment banking, explained:
“mBank is a leader among Polish financial institutions when it comes to funding energy transition. Our bank has provided more than EUR 200m in funding for renewable energy projects in 2021 alone. Moreover, as per our new strategy, we plan to commit EUR 2.2bn to finance Poland’s economy eco-transformation.”
As Marta Walendzewicz, Menlo Electric’s CFO, explains:
“We already serve clients in almost 20 countries from our 7 logistic hubs across Europe. To fuel the company’s further growth, we have set up a 2022 Growth Funding Program worth more than EUR 20m, encompassing loans, letters of credit and factoring. The agreement with mBank is an important milestone in completing the program.”
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About Menlo Electric
Menlo Electric is the fastest-growing PV distributor in Europe with established sales to almost 20 European countries. Company guarantee high-quality products through stable and long-term contracts with global leaders in the production of photovoltaic equipment. Menlo is the official distributor of Jinko, JA Solar, Risen, SolarEdge, FoxESS, Sungrow and a member of R.Power Renewables Group with over EUR 150m in annual revenues.
About mBank
Set up in 1986, mBank is Poland’s fifth-largest universal banking group in terms of total assets (at the end of 2021). The bank services approximately 4.5 million retail clients and 31.3 thousand corporate clients in Poland and more than 1.0 million retail clients in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The institution’s offering includes retail, SME, corporate and investment banking, as well as other financial services such as leasing, factoring, commercial real estate financing, brokerage, wealth management, distribution of insurance, corporate finance and advisory in the scope of capital markets. Commerzbank is mBank’s strategic shareholder and owns 69.3% of the shares.
Press release provided by Menlo Electric.
