Cool or Cosy has bought South Australian solar panel maker Tindo
Twenty three years after he started as a sales consultant at insulation company Cool or Cosy, Glenn Morelli owns Australia’s only solar panel manufacturer.
Twenty three years after he started as a sales consultant at insulation company Cool or Cosy, Glenn Morelli owns Australia’s only solar panel manufacturer.
Mr Morelli got the keys to Tindo last week, when he concluded negotiations with Adrian Ferraretto, who started the solar company in 2011.
Less than a week into his new job, Mr Morelli has plans to expand Tindo’s Mawson Lakes factory.
Twenty five of Tindo’s 70 employees work at Mawson Lakes, but Mr Morelli said a 400 square metre extension would create at least 10 more jobs and significantly boost manufacturing capacity.
Mr Morelli became a sales manager at Cool or Cosy in 2000, before buying the company and presiding over its shift to becoming South Australia’s largest local solar panel installer.
The company builds battery storage solutions as well as solar panels, and Mr Morelli said he had expressed interest in taking part in the South Australian Government’s project to build Australia’s biggest battery.
He backed Tindo’s international record and said the opportunity would “drive jobs and quality manufacturing in South Australia”.
“Battery storage at a grid level has been installed in New Zealand to do exactly what the Government is looking to do here on a smaller scale but there’s six more projects lined up to grid connect in New Zealand,” Mr Morelli said.
He said he wasn’t sure if other South Australia solar projects were using more advanced battery technology than Tindo but said South Australia’s recent energy security issues had generated interest in battery storage.
“In South Australia it’s been difficult. SAPN (SA Power Networks) have some issues and it’s been a difficult market,” he said.
“The blackouts have really spiked interest in battery storage and we have solutions for that and want to be part of it.”
Mr Ferraretto said he sold the businesses due to personal circumstances and had “mixed feelings’ about his departure due to its recent success.
“We thought we would have to expand sometime this year because of how busy it was. It shows how Australians are supporting Tindo and supporting Australian-made,” he said.
“It’s always been a unique solar company in Australia which stands for something which is manufacturing and manufacturing jobs. Glenn and his team will hopefully take it to the next level.”
During a tour of the factory yesterday, Premier Jay Weatherill said the Government’s $150 million renewable energy fund would provide important opportunities for innovative companies like Tindo.
“Not only will this create more affordable, more reliable and greener energy for South Australians it will also create job opportunities and cement our reputation as a leader in renewable energy,” Mr Weatherill said.