TransGrid and Endeavour Energy are teaming up with nine of the world’s best late-stage energy startups in EnergyLab’s new Scaleup Program cohort – offering a unique opportunity to help the nine companies to unlock their next wave of growth.
EnergyLab’s Scaleup Program was launched in 2020, after being built collaboratively with Australian utilities and startups – allowing the nine startups to collaborate with ANZ’s most innovative utilities, investors and founders.
The program is industry-led; sponsored in 2021 by TransGrid and Endeavour Energy, two of the nation’s biggest energy utilities.
The nine startups selected to join EnergyLab’s 2021 Scaleup Program cohort are as follows: Aperio Systems, Inc. (USA, Israel), Camus Energy (USA) , Electron (UK), Neara (Australia), Overstory (Netherlands), Proxxi (Canada), Shifted Energy (USA), V-Labs (Switzerland) and Zaphiro Technologies (Switzerland).
These startups represent the best in innovative technologies across the energy sector, from data integrity (Aperio Systems), augmented reality (V-Labs) and electrical safety (Proxxi) to critical infrastructure digital twins (Neara) and distributed energy resource aggregation (Shifted Energy).
TransGrid and Endeavour Energy operate a large portion of the electricity infrastructure across NSW and the ACT, with TransGrid managing the high voltage electricity transmission network and Endeavour Energy supplying electricity to 2.5 million people across Sydney’s Greater West, Blue Mountains, Southern Highlands, the Illawarra and the South Coast regions.
Eva Hanly, TransGrid’s Executive Manager Strategy Innovation and Technology, said that TransGrid is looking forward to teaming up with the featured start-ups.
“We’re thrilled to be supporting the EnergyLab Scaleup Program and the exciting cohort of scale-up companies taking part. We’re looking forward to offering them the opportunity to work with us and to develop innovative solutions together. The companies in the cohort have a lot to offer the energy sector and we’re proud to be supporting them,” Ms Hanly said.
In selecting the 2021 Scaleup Program cohort, EnergyLab worked with TransGrid and Endeavour Energy to identify their priority areas and recruited startups from across the world that could help unlock new opportunities, save customers money and speed up the transition to a low carbon future.
Australian startup Neara, which creates engineering-grade digital twins of critical infrastructure, bringing organisations closer to their assets, environment, and business, is thrilled to be a part of the EnergyLab Scaleup Program.
“We are thrilled to be included in the EnergyLab Scaleup Program, particularly given its focus on enabling companies like Neara to access significant new growth opportunities. We are excited by the prospect of collaborating with TransGrid, especially in light of their progressive innovation agenda, and our belief that Neara’s digital twin software platform can greatly enable TransGrid’s ambitions,” CCO Jack Curtis said.
EnergyLab Chair, Piers Grove, said they’re excited about the global cohort and the opportunity to help these startups grow through new access to Australian and New Zealand markets.
“In the age of COVID-19 especially, we’re proud to give Australian utilities access to the best local and overseas energy startups while other, more traditional means of collaboration and expansion remain disrupted,” Mr Grove said.
“With TransGrid and Endeavour Energy as program partners, we also have a unique opportunity to promote innovation and help advance the uptake of renewable technologies in the energy sector. Ensuring our electricity transmission and distribution networks innovate to integrate additional renewable energy generation is absolutely key to enabling the sector’s transition to net zero and customers’ access to affordable clean energy.”
Through the program, the selected startups will deepen their relationships with TransGrid and Endeavour Energy, meet some of ANZ’s most active clean energy investors and have opportunities to connect with EnergyLab’s Innovation Partners.
These Innovation Partners represent the most innovative utilities in Australia and Zealand and include the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), Aurora Energy, Counties Power, CS Energy, FRV, Hydro Tasmania, Nectr, PowerNet, Scanpower, Synergy, TasNetworks and Yurika.
The 2021 Scaleup Program cohort represents a diverse global mix of startups that work with energy utilities to innovate across their businesses, from asset management and network operations to grid modernisation.
The program’s best asset is the chance for members to build relationships with each other, with one-third of the first cohort collaborating formally together.
EnergyLab is excited to see the partnerships that will form between the cohort’s local and international startups, with companies participating from as far away as Hawaii and Switzerland.
