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DZ-4

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Germany's first provider of solar systems for rent

Hamburg, GermanyFounded 2011Energy
Valuation $50–100M Last recorded · 2019
Headcount <100 Current team size
Total funding $10–50M Disclosed equity funding
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About DZ-4

DZ-4 GmbH emerged in the German market in 2012, positioning itself as a pioneer in the solar-as-a-service sector. The company was established in Hamburg by Tobias Schütt and Florian Berghausen. Schütt, with a background in renewable energies from roles at Conergy, BP Solar, and Deutsche Bank, identified a market opportunity driven by falling solar technology prices. His partner, Florian Berghausen, brought a decade of experience in marketing and distribution for solar photovoltaics in Germany. Their combined expertise allowed them to introduce a novel business model to the German market: leasing photovoltaic systems to homeowners.

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The core of DZ-4's business was to provide solar power systems to residential customers without the upfront investment typically required. Clients would enter into a long-term lease agreement, paying a fixed monthly fee for a customized solar system, often including battery storage. This model was structured as a comprehensive service package, encompassing planning, installation, maintenance, insurance, and monitoring of the systems. This approach was designed to lower the barrier to entry for homeowners, offering them predictable energy costs and a way to participate in the energy transition. The company sourced equipment from manufacturers and utilized a network of local installers for the physical setup, avoiding the overhead of a large in-house installation team.

DZ-4's journey included several financing rounds and a strategic partnership with Watt & Wärme Energiekonzepte GmbH & Co. KG early on. The company's growth eventually attracted the attention of EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG, a major German utility. EnBW began investing in DZ-4 and became the majority shareholder in June 2021, before acquiring the company outright in November 2022. Despite this backing, EnBW made a strategic decision to discontinue DZ-4's service operations toward the end of 2024. The existing portfolio of customer contracts and assets was subsequently transferred, with a significant portion going to Bullfinch Asset AG, a company DZ-4 had previously partnered with on portfolio investments.

Source: Dealroom company data

At a glance

Status
Acquired
Founded
2011
Headquarters
Hamburg, Germany
Employees
29
Open positions
None listed
Dealroom signal
59.1/100
Industry
Energy
Sub-industry
Clean Energy, Energy Providers
Sector
Energy, Solar Energy, Sustainable Development Goals, Urban Tech, Climate Tech, Green Buildings, Residential Solar, Solar Financing, Renewable Energy, Hard Tech
Business model
Marketplace & ecommerce
Client focus
b2c

Funding history

6 recorded events

Company financing events and reported valuations.

Deal typeDateAmountValuationInvestorsSource
GROWTH EQUITY VC✓Equity / VC Apr 2023 $17M — Undisclosed ↗
LENDING CAPITAL✓Other financing Apr 2023 $44M — Undisclosed ↗
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Financials

Revenue, earnings and profit over time

Revenue, earnings and other financial measures where available. Years marked “E” are estimates.

YearProfitMargin
2026 —
2025 —
2024 —
2023 —
2022 —
2021 —
2020 —
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Growth signals

DZ-4 website traffic

Latest recorded traffic for DZ-4 is 590 monthly website visits, down 68.9% over the last three months. DZ-4's team grew 0% over the past year.

Latest monthly visits590 3-month web change-68.9% 1-year team growth0%
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Similar companies

Closest operating peers by Dealroom taxonomy

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Showing 8 of the closest matchesCompare every metric →

Investments and acquisitions

Capital deployed

Recent portfolio relationships for companies that also act as investors or acquirers.

Investors

2 investors on the cap table

From Dealroom's funding and investor records, grouped by the round each investor first entered.

Seed1 investor entered at this stage

  • EnBW NewVentures

Other known investors1 additional known investor

  • Crispin Leick
Team profiled 9 named & role-tagged
Founders Hidden — book a demo/100 quality score
Key operators 1 quality Hidden — book a demo/100
Potential founders Hidden — book a demo likely future founders
Startup mafia Hidden — book a demo alumni-founded startups
Talent movements Hidden — book a demo in · Hidden — book a demo out past 12 months

Source: Dealroom Talent Intelligence.

Global footprint

Workforce and web traffic by country
Workforce by country
🇩🇪 Germany · Hamburg HQ
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Market sentiment

Posts on X, past 7 days

An AI-synthesised read of the highest-engagement posts about DZ-4 on X, ranked by likes and reposts, corporate channels excluded.

Reading the room on X — pulling top posts and synthesizing themes…

Source: X recent search ranked by engagement (likes + retweets) · Synthesis by Claude · Cached for 1 hour

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