GREATCELL SOLAR UK LIMITED

Their core work

Greatcell Solar UK is a private technology company focused on advanced photovoltaic materials and devices, with a specialisation in perovskite solar cells — a third-generation technology seen as the most commercially promising successor to silicon panels. They contribute materials science, device engineering, and industrialisation know-how to European research consortia, working on both the fundamental performance of solar cells and the practical challenges of scaling them toward commercial production. Their involvement in projects covering both efficiency optimisation and exploitation pathways suggests they operate at the boundary between applied research and early-stage commercialisation. Their website domain (dyesol.com) indicates a heritage in dye-sensitised solar cell technology from which they have evolved toward perovskite photovoltaics.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

Their early H2020 participation (GOTSolar, 2016) centred on solar cell efficiency and stability — the core performance metrics of third-generation photovoltaics. By 2017, with MAESTRO, their keyword landscape expanded to include exploitation, upscaling, materials, and light-emitting diodes, signalling a shift from performance research toward commercialisation readiness and broader optoelectronic applications. The trajectory is clear: from advancing the science of perovskite solar cells toward translating that science into deployable products and processes.

Greatcell Solar UK is moving from research partnership roles toward exploitation-oriented work, making them a useful partner for projects that need to demonstrate a pathway from laboratory results to manufacturable perovskite products.

How they like to work

Greatcell Solar UK participates exclusively as a consortium partner — they have never coordinated an H2020 project — which positions them as a specialist contributor rather than a project driver. With 23 unique partners across 11 countries from just two projects, they join large, diverse consortia rather than tightly-knit teams. This pattern suggests they bring a specific industrial or materials expertise that consortia seek out, rather than building long-term bilateral relationships with a fixed set of partners.

Across two projects, Greatcell Solar UK has worked with 23 distinct partners spanning 11 countries, indicating broad European exposure despite limited project volume. Their participation in both a Research and Innovation Action (RIA) and a Marie Skłodowska-Curie training network (MSCA-ITN) connects them to both research institutes and academic training ecosystems.

What sets them apart

Greatcell Solar UK occupies a rare niche as an industry SME with hands-on perovskite materials expertise inside EU research consortia — a role more often filled by universities or large industrial players. Their combination of stability engineering knowledge and upscaling experience makes them particularly valuable for projects that need an industrial reality check on perovskite research. For a consortium coordinator, they offer commercial credibility and exploitation pathway expertise that academic partners typically cannot provide.

Highlights from their portfolio

• GOTSolar
  Their largest H2020 project by far (EUR 650,000), focused on third-generation solar cell advances under FET — the EU's highest-ambition research programme — reflecting recognition of their technical depth.
• MAESTRO
  A Marie Skłodowska-Curie training network explicitly targeting perovskite commercialisation and exploitation, placing Greatcell Solar in an industrial mentor role for early-career researchers in the field.