When will the handover take place?
Julius Möhrstedt: From October 2025, I’ll take over as CEO of IBC Solar AG. Of course, I won’t be alone in this, but will be supported by a strong and experienced board team.
And you, Mr Möhrstedt, are you retiring?
Udo Möhrstedt: I stepped into the role of Chairman of the Supervisory Board back in January 2024 when Dr Haft became CEO.
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Following in your father's footsteps isn’t easy. Was this always the plan, or how did the decision come about?
Julius Möhrstedt: My parents always gave me the freedom to choose my own career. I grew up around mechanical engineering and could easily have gone into industry. But I was drawn to the broader changes in society and especially the ecological and economic transformation that comes with the energy transition. So, in 2016 I decided to join IBC Solar, starting out part-time and going full-time in 2018.
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Did your son formally apply? Why didn’t you encourage him more directly?
Udo Möhrstedt: It was entirely his choice. Once he made that decision, we shaped the next steps together – largely within the family. You can’t force young people into roles they don’t want or that don’t suit them. I made it clear Julius was free to go his own way. Whether or not to join IBC Solar was his call, and it was made independently.
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Looking back over more than 40 years, what qualities does a CEO need to thrive in this industry’s ups and downs?
Udo Möhrstedt: Above all, the quality of curiosity. That can be tough when the day-to-day work is demanding.
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From a small engineering office to a thriving mid-sized company – what guiding principles have helped you steer the business through good times and bad?
Udo Möhrstedt: Today, we have 485 employees. I’ve always encouraged them to take initiative. Waiting for the board to decide everything doesn’t work. The board sets the direction so the company can evolve. Of course, you also need a certain appetite for business risk, but it has to be a risk you understand and can manage. That, to me, is good leadership.
Julius Möhrstedt: After so many years in the industry, my father has a sharp instinct for developments, trends and opportunities, even if they sometimes unfold more slowly than you’d like.
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For example?
Udo Möhrstedt: Take storage for commercial and industrial (C&I) customers. I’m still surprised more businesses aren’t investing in solar and storage. The benefits are clear and visible. It should be moving faster.
Julius Möhrstedt: I think businesses operate from a different logic than we do in the industry. For homeowners, solar plus storage pays off over ten to twelve years. Companies often expect returns within four to five years, typically matching the typical tenure of managing directors. Why would they invest in benefits they might never see? That’s not the only reason, but it’s a factor. Still, the appeal of predictable energy costs and avoided grid fees is making self-supply increasingly attractive. It just takes time for the message to spread.
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And spread it will. Storage systems are becoming standard for C&I, just like they are in single-family homes, even if they’re more complex.
Julius Möhrstedt: Falling prices are helping the market along. Since 2018, retail storage prices have fallen by at least half. That’s a remarkable drop. As specialist distributors, our challenge is to keep operations stable despite falling prices and rising costs.
Which new product areas do you see as promising?
Udo Möhrstedt: Heating and cooling are gaining ground, whereby the electrical systems powered by solar. Air conditioning, for example, is becoming more important as midday heat intensifies.
IBC Solar has a strong position in the project business. Is that becoming more important?
Julius Möhrstedt: It’s growing as fast as the solar trade. Ground-mounted systems for pure feed-in are on the way out. Even in this space, storage is becoming central. Anyone planning a solar park today is thinking about storage. The project side also feeds into our distribution business. It helps us understand what C&I storage systems need, how to plan and implement them. Storage is pulling us closer to the energy market, and that’s the future.
Where is IBC Solar headed over the next three to five years?
Julius Möhrstedt: Our IBC Solar brand has been around since 1998 and continues to evolve. We offer our own branded products, even though we don’t manufacture them ourselves. Making that quality visible to customers is key. We benefit from rigorous testing at Sunlab for our modules and mounting systems. A brand is only strong if it earns trust.
Udo Möhrstedt: And trust takes years or even decades to build, but it can vanish overnight. That’s why we never compromise on quality, reliability or longevity.
The market today is under huge pressure, especially from fast, low-cost online competition. How do you respond?
Julius Möhrstedt: Online price pressure is driving quality down. Two-thirds of the modules being installed today are questionable, and substructures even more so. The Fraunhofer Institute and TÜV have both confirmed this. That makes high quality more important than ever. Companies that can guarantee it offer genuine added value. IBC Solar stands for quality, and that’s why we can offer 20- or 25-year performance guarantees on our products.
Interview by Heiko Schwarzburger, translation by Tom Finnis
