PHOTON International The Photovoltaic Magazine

New head at Tenesol Germany aims for larger market share

In May, French energy giant Electricité de France (EdF) and the oil multinational Total both boosted their shares in the Lyon, France-based PV company Total Energie SA to 50 percent, and beginning in September the company will operate under the name Tenesol SA (see PI 6/2005, p. 9). But along with the new name, the German subsidiary is also taking on new contours.

	© Stefan M. Prager for photon-pictures.com
New head for a new era: As of September, Christian Dorn will take over the management of Tenesol Deutschland GmbH.

Starting in September, Christian Dorn will take over the lead at Tenesol Deutschland GmbH (previously Total Energie Deutschland GmbH) in Brühl near Cologne, thereby replacing the interim managing director, Herbert Wurst. Most recently, Dorn was head of the department of renewable energies at Tyczka Totalgaz GmbH – a subsidiary of Total Deutschland GmbH mainly focused on liquid gas – where he built up the solar department for around one year. Dorn, who originally worked in the IT branch and was employed at NEC in Munich for 11 years working primarily with monitors and mobile telephones, would like to make the PV business more professional: »The difference is like chalk and cheese. The distribution channels are not yet properly separated and everyone is delivering all over the place.«

This, at least, he aims to change at Tenesol's German branch: it won't be delivering to installers anymore, just to wholesalers, whose number will also be dramatically reduced. In five years, Dorn would like the company with its current 12 employees to be amongst the »top three« of the PV system companies. Total Energie Deutschland GmbH's turnover was around €48 million ($58.2 million) in 2004, chiefly generated through sales of solar modules.