Investors concerned with the new energy system have primarily focused on hardware — but VCs have also become taken by a cohort of companies building software solutions that could help bolster our new grid.
That includes companies working on solutions from grid balancing software to platforms where companies can make agreements with renewable energy providers.
To find out who could grab the limelight next, Sifted asked five European climate tech investors for the energy software startups they’re watching. With just one caveat: the companies couldn’t be in their portfolio.
Will Dufton, principal at Giant Ventures
Overstory — the Netherlands
Vegetation and electrified wires don’t go well together. Overstory helps the world’s largest utilities companies tackle one of their biggest challenges today: scalably and reliably identifying areas where vegetation mismanagement might cause power outages and wildfires. The company started in Amsterdam in 2018 but is expanding rapidly across Europe and North America.
Plexigrid — Sweden
The energy transition is driving a rapid increase in the number of distributed energy resources (DERs) connected to the grid. DERs include electric cars to grid-scale batteries. Managing all of these assets and the energy flows between them is very complex.
Plexigrid’s software helps distributed system operators manage and optimise this increasingly complex web of energy supply and demand, creating a healthier grid and delivering lower prices for consumers.
Ostrom — Germany
Consumers are more conscious about saving money on their energy bills by managing their energy use with smart meters and, if they have energy storage and generation assets at home, trading energy with the grid.
Matthias Martensen and Karl Villanueva, the founders of Ostrom, are delivering a low-cost digital energy provider for consumers in Germany, taking advantage of new legislations mandating smart meter installations.
Craig Douglas, partner at World Fund
Axle Energy — UK
Axle connects home devices like electric cars and batteries to the power grid, helping to reduce energy costs and carbon emissions by using renewable energy when it’s available. This could significantly lower CO2, by optimising when people use power and cutting inefficiencies in the energy market.
Granular Energy — France
Granular helps track and trade clean energy in real time, so companies can ensure they use renewable power, helping to reduce emissions and speeding up the shift to a carbon-free grid. By showing what the real-time cost of green electricity is, you can price it accurately, thus incentivising green flexible power.
Electron — UK
Electron builds systems that make it easier to balance energy use from renewables, reducing dependence on fossil fuels and preventing energy waste. By taking in all the constraints in the energy markets, including local constraints, you can create additional revenue streams for flexible load and at the same time reduce the requirements for grid reinforcement — both of which are needed to fully decarbonise the carbon energy system (with the added benefit that it’s the most cost-effective way of doing it).
Sebastian Peck, founding partner at Kompas
Tem — UK
Due to the significant increase in decentralised energy resources, there is a major opportunity to facilitate energy procurement between these asset owners and customers who want to source renewable energy. There are 22k renewable energy generator sites in the UK alone.
Tem bypasses the wholesale market and the company’s advanced data engine finds the best match between companies looking to procure green energy and renewable energy asset owners, to enable energy procurement through power purchase agreements (PPAs) — a contract between an energy buyer and producer. Customers can trace the source of their energy supply and the company’s algorithms anticipate fluctuations in energy demand and supply. The platform also handles invoicing and payment.
Enode — Norway
Enode connects energy products such as electric vehicles, batteries, heaters and other energy assets with an API. This integrates them into an app to optimise energy consumption and help to participate in the grid balancing market with connected hardware. The company is growing rapidly and supports a variety of use cases such as home energy management, vehicle-to-grid applications and virtual power plants.
Ev.energy — UK
UK-based Ev.energy provides managed EV charging solutions, featuring the most extensive vehicle and charger integrations in the industry. The company is working with 55 utilities across North America and Europe and recently received a $41m grant from the California Energy Commission to scale incentive-based EV programmes.
It also acquired US competitor Rolling Energy Resources to increase its US footprint and became the first company to harness EVs to deliver energy reserve services to the UK’s electricity system operator through the STOR (short-term operating reserve) programme. The company is another example of the rapid pace of innovation in the grid flexibility vertical.
Daria Saharova, general partner at World Fund
Accure – the Netherlands
Accure uses AI-powered software to analyse and monitor battery health and performance across various industries. By optimising battery life and safety, Accure prevents battery failures and extends their use, reducing waste and the need for new raw materials.
Trawa — Germany
Trawa develops AI-driven software to optimise the purchase and management of green electricity for businesses. By helping businesses use electricity more efficiently and source it from renewable options like wind and solar, Trawa makes it easier for SMEs to transition to clean energy.
EcoPlanet – Germany
EcoPlanet provides energy management solutions that help companies reduce costs and CO2 emissions. Its AI-driven platform, ‘Ember’, offers real-time insights into energy usage, combining procurement strategies, monitoring, and compliance with regulations.
Rabot.energy — Germany
Rabot.Energy is developing a platform for dynamic electricity pricing, aimed at eco-conscious households and electric vehicle owners. The platform leverages real-time electricity market data to optimise charging schedules, helping users save on energy costs while reducing their carbon footprint.
Rabot.Energy also offers charging management and consulting services for users.
Onu.energy — Germany
Onu.energy is developing an AI-powered SaaS to streamline energy procurement and management for businesses. The platform automates processes like budgeting, hedging, investments and energy consumption management, helping companies switch to green energy.
Nick de la Forge, general partner at Planet A
Podero — Austria
Podero provides enterprise software that helps utilities manage customer energy assets for grid stabilisation and energy trading. The platform uses machine learning forecasts and trading algorithms to increase revenue utilities and help cut consumers’ electricity costs.
Luxera Energy — Germany
Based in Munich, Luxera Energy is building a one-stop solution for investments in large-scale energy storage facilities, helping investors and landowners to efficiently scale grid storage capacity. Its full-service battery energy storage systems investment platform covers the entire value chain, from development to operations.
Read the orginal article: https://sifted.eu/articles/energy-software-startups-to-watch/
