Student Entrepreneur Wants to Optimize Solar Power

Hadi Saade wants to change the way Lebanon uses power. The 19-year-old LAU mechatronics engineering student is behind the startup Solice, which proposes “a clean, efficient and cost-effective alternative to traditional power.”

Saade describes Solice’s products as “solar-based but with added value.” He has developed a tracker that follows the sun’s arc across the sky to increase efficiency, and a cooling mechanism that prevents overheating and thus power loss among photovoltaic solar panels. Solice’s flagship product is a patented solar panel that is 20 percent more efficient and has double the lifespan of models already on the market, and that simultaneously acts as a water heater, producing double savings for households and businesses that use it.

All of the devices promise to reduce pollution and noise caused by traditional generators, which kick in during Lebanon’s daily rolling power outages.

Because of his product’s numerous applications and potential to benefit so many people, Saade entered his company in the Hult Prize competition, which selects and incubates community-focused startups run by students at universities across the world. Over most of 2018, Saade received mentoring on design, production, marketing and more, and created a powerful presentation for the competition’s judges.

Solice came in among the top three in the Hult Prize Middle East Finals this month, and Saade is sure to make an impact in a country that has over 300 days of sunshine per year but a staggering deficit of electricity.

“Most Lebanese pay the national electricity company for their monthly power usage as well as a generator supplier, who can mark up the cost or deliver less electricity than promised,” he says. And while there are other solar panels on the market, they are inefficient and very expensive.

“Solice is based on the idea that people should get what they pay for – and more,” he says, adding, “I believe energy should be free, and producing it should not be detrimental to the environment.”

Energy is just one of the problems he hopes to tackle in his career. Also on his radar are what he says other big challenges Lebanon is facing: “poor waste management – from sewage to trash – and the aging and incomplete infrastructure.”

Contrary to the sense of resignation that many feel about Lebanon’s problems, Saade sees opportunities. “There are solutions,” he says. “There are always solutions.”

As a full-time student with a growing company to think about, Saade is busy. But being part of an institution such as LAU means there are always inspiration and opportunities at hand. He thanks his professors at the School of Engineering for their mentorship, and notes that any student can break into the startup world with the right resources. For example, he says, “I see great potential in the The Fouad Makhzoumi Innovation Center, and I believe it will lead to long-term, positive developments for LAU, for its students, and for Lebanon.”

And though he was instructed in business and marketing as part of the Hult Prize sessions, he says he’s interested in taking some courses at the Adnan Kassar School of Business to best prepare himself for his future.

As for what pushes him to excel despite his rigorous academic and professional schedule, Saade says, simply, “I’ve always had a vision of innovation. I’ve always dreamed of creating new things.”

Solice’s flagship product is a patented solar panel that is 20 percent more efficient and has double the lifespan of models already on the market.

Saade’s Solice came in among the top three in the Hult Prize Middle East Finals.