ACT’s entrepreneurs and clean energy businesses funded to innovate


Released 15/08/2017

Smarter home energy systems, hydrogen fuel cells and solar radiation forecasting for large solar farms are just some of the business ideas that have received support under the ACT Government’s renewable energy innovation funding schemes, Minister for Climate Change and Sustainability Shane Rattenbury announced today.

“The ACT Government is committed to supporting our local entrepreneurs and innovative renewable energy start-ups to help ensure the Territory maintains its global leadership role in smart technology development and renewable energy,” Mr Rattenbury said.

The Renewable Energy Innovation Fund (REIF) Direct Grants and the new ‘Renewables Stream’ of Innovation Connect will be providing support worth approximately $1.1 million and $100,000 respectively to local businesses and start-ups.

“The Direct Grants scheme supports clean tech start-ups with seed funding to help take their businesses to the next level. The scheme targets support toward proof-of-concept, tech demonstration and business scale up and growth,” Mr Rattenbury said.

“The Innovation Connect ‘Renewables Stream’ will provide matched-funding support and accommodation at the Renewables Innovation Hub in the City to assist three early stage businesses and entrepreneurs to accelerate the development of their innovative products and services.

“Canberra has some of the world’s most progressive renewable energy and climate change targets. Delivering these is a shared responsibility and it is fantastic we have so many local start-ups that want to play their part in this emerging industry.”

A full list of winners and photos from the event ceremony are available on request.

For further information visit the Innovation Connect webpage and the Direct Grants webpage.

REIF Direct Grants

  • Solcast ($287,000), a renewable energy software company based at Canberra’s Renewables Innovation Hub, will develop a world-leading service for forecasting power output at large solar farms.
  • Reposit Power ($250,000), a Canberra company whose ‘Reposit Box’ technology is an intelligent and automated control system for household batteries, will develop the second generation of the Reposit Box for mass production.
  • ITP Thermal ($95,000), a Canberra company working on solar thermal technology, will commercialise a lower cost energy storage solution for concentrated solar power plants.
  • PV Lab Australia ($63,070), an independent Canberra company based at the ANU providing quality assurance for solar panels, will develop an Australia-first test for conditions that can lead to solar panel failure.
  • Beast Solutions ($235,000), a Canberra energy consultancy, will develop a demonstration project at Ginninderry that will capture emissions from waste to generate renewable energy.
  • Ecospectral ($110,000), a Canberra company whose ‘BRIM System’ can reduce energy operating costs and emissions, will establish a pilot site with a view to global commercialisation of version two of the BRIM System.

Innovation Connect Grants ‘Renewables Stream’

  • Arcturus Dynamics ($35,000), will develop the Titan Power System – a hydrogen fuel cell power system designed to deliver greater energy density than currently available lithium-ion battery technology;
  • Mitra Solar Concentrators ($35,000), a Canberra based company, will develop a virtual 3-D prototype of a low cost solar concentrator with efficiency comparable to significantly more expensive solar dishes; and
  • PV Lab Australia ($27,093), a Canberra based company, will develop an online service or app to provide quality reports on the most commonly used solar panel brands and models offered in consumer installations.

- Statement ends -

Shane Rattenbury, MLA | Media Releases

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