Tindo, Australia’s only manufacturer of solar panels, today announced a major expansion to its partner network that will significantly increase the availability of its products in every state and territory to meet growing demand. 

The milestone has been achieved after a strategic pivot by Tindo to expand beyond South Australia and growing its partner network of installers and retailers, which has more than doubled over the past year to over 100 nationwide. It comes after Tindo unveiled its brand refresh in February, which emphasises collaboration with installers and suppliers to give customers across the country access to Australian Made solar panels.

Tindo, which has been making solar panels in Adelaide since 2011, has  designed its panels to withstand Australia’s harsh environment and they have been shown to be best-performing in the market through testing at the Desert Knowledge Australia Solar Centre. 

Richard Petterson, CEO of Tindo said, “Our vision is to make quality, locally-made renewable technology available across Australia. Our collaboration with industry-leading partners allows us to reach customers across the nation, providing them with the highest quality panels, tailor-made for Australian conditions. For us it’s important to ensure that customers have the option of not just reducing their carbon footprint but also getting a high-quality, locally made product.” 

Currently, Tindo has the capacity to produce 360,000 panels annually, the equivalent of 150MW, at its manufacturing site in Mawson Lakes, Adelaide. However, the company has ambitious plans to construct a $100m factory that could increase its output by 1GW per year. 

Sovereign capability and local manufacturing are key factors in Australia’s decarbonisation efforts – despite Australians purchasing 60 million solar panels over the past decade, 99% of them have been imported. Tindo’s expansion aligns with state and federal government policies to establish an Australian renewables manufacturing industry and creates a network to distribute Australian Made products in the coming years. 

According to Green Energy Markets, combined rooftop solar capacity will rise from 20GW today to 66GW over the next three decades under the most pessimistic scenario and up to 100GW with additional government support.

Mr Petterson emphasised the importance of sourcing solar panels locally and kick-starting a domestic renewables manufacturing industry to ensure more of the economic benefit of the transition stayed in Australia. He said, “while over one-third of all Australian homes have adopted solar in some capacity, the vast majority of solar panels are imported. This is a huge missed opportunity, we need to rely less on imports and focus more on the tech and innovation being manufactured locally that’s able to provide the same, if not better services.”

With Tindo’s rebrand and commitment to expanding local manufacturing capabilities, Australians now have the opportunity to embrace Australian Made solar panels and support the nation’s renewable energy goals.

Tindo will be exhibiting at Solar and Storage Live in Brisbane on 1st and 2nd May.