Our Story
We are Sara Plaga and Kim-Joar Myklebust, founders of Levante. We come form two different countries, Italy and Norway, where we grew up with a passion for travel and nature.
We like discovering the world by sailing and camping, living an essential and meaningful life to limit waste and ecological impact.
In our travels we often faced a challenge shared by many sailors, campers and off-grid travellers: having reliable energy wherever the journey takes you.
To solve this problem we created Levante.
What started as a search for better solar panels eventually became a mission to simplify the entire solar journey.
A new beginning
As a young family, we wanted to follow our dreams of exploring the world with our daughters while using our profession to make a positive impact on the planet.
In 2021, we decided to start a new chapter in our lives by founding our startup, Levante, all while having a one-year-old daughter and another on the way.
The name Levante is inspired by our first daughter, Aurora, and symbolizes the sun rising in the east, hope, energy, and a new beginning.
Solving a problem
During our travels by sailboat and RV, we often faced a challenge: having clean energy anywhere with a durable, lightweight solution.
The solar panels we tried had limitations. Rigid solar panels were bulky, while portable solar panels were often fragile and difficult to integrate into a complete system.
That’s when we got the idea for Levante.
How could we create a solar panel that was lightweight, durable and practical for real adventures?
Using our experience in composite engineering, we developed an origami-inspired solar panel concept with a rigid surface that folds into a compact, portable structure.
After years of development, we perfected a new technology that incorporates recycled carbon fiber, making it durable, rigid and lightweight.
This led to the development of several innovations combining carbon fiber and solar technology, including CarbonCore and our Integrated Solar Technology.
Along the way, we realised that solar panels were only part of the challenge. Understanding how much power was needed, choosing the right batteries and MPPTs, and coordinating different suppliers and installers often felt more complicated than it should be.
Through years of testing, sailing and working on solar projects, our search for a better solar panel gradually evolved into helping customers simplify the entire solar journey.
Today, we design complete solar solutions, from idea to installation, including custom solar panels, structures, batteries, MPPTs and innovative carbon fiber solar technologies.
Making life-long friends
We’ve always believed that the best way to solve problems is through collaboration and learning from new people.
To test our concept in real-world sailing and outdoor environments, we partnered with adventure duo Dan and Kika, aka Sailing Uma. Their expertise in sailing and years of travel experience have helped us understand the true needs and challenges faced by adventurers.
Dan and Kika have supported our idea from the very beginning. They continue to advise us and test our products, from the plywood concept to the working prototype now installed on their boat, Uma.
Levante today
Since then, Levante has grown from a Kickstarter-backed family startup to a vibrant studio with a team of like-minded people from around the world. Now more than ever, we’re passionate about solving problems, developing renewable energy solutions, and taking care of people along the way.
