Energy Excelerator– Investing in Hawaii’s Renewable Future

Hawaii is an amazing island state for hiking, swimming, surfing and… renewable energy innovation! According to Energy Excelerator, “Hawaii has the ideal economic conditions for launching a clean energy company” and also some of the most pressing need for innovation. The electricity rate is higher than most of the country, primarily because the electricity is generated by burning imported diesel fuel. But a few years ago Hawaii committed to the Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative with the goal of achieving some of the highest clean energy standards in the country: 40% renewable energy and 30% energy efficiency by 2030.

The Energy Excelerator is a startup program dedicated to helping solve the world’s energy challenges, starting in Hawaii. We help innovative companies succeed in Hawaii and the Asia Pacific with non-dilutive funding, strategic relationships, and a vibrant ecosystem.

Recently the Energy Excelerator was awarded $30 million from the U.S. Department of Defense’s Office of Naval Research, of which $5 million will be invested local companies looking to grow. As explained on TechCrunch, “Energy Excelerator works with seed- and growth-stage companies building energy solutions that can be applied in Hawaii. Seventeen startups have graduated from the program thus far, half of which were founded in-state […] Energy Excelerator could be making steps toward helping cleantech start-ups get traction. Thus far, their 17 graduates have gone on to raise over $38 million and find customers in large companies like Toshiba.”

According to the Excelerator website, six of the startups are considered growth stage and will receive up to $1M each to demonstrate their technology in Hawaii. For the seed stage program they have also chosen nine 9 highly promising startups for awards up to $100,000 each to focus on commercialization of early-stage technologies.

Smart Grid and Energy Storage:

Amber Kinetics, Inc. | Amber Kinetics commercializes a low-cost flywheel energy storage solution to help utilities reliably integrate wind and solar into the power grid. Ambri | Ambri is deploying liquid metal battery technology to make power cheaper, cleaner, and more reliable all over the world. Ballast Energy, Inc. | Ballast Energy, Inc. halves the cost of lithium ion batteries by pioneering a low-cost production process to unlock new markets. Shifted Energy | Shifted Energy deploys smart grid, interactive demand response solutions using open standards and their Green Shift Platform. Stem, Inc. | Stem optimizes energy savings and minimizes needed battery size through data analytics and advanced energy storage solutions.

Energy Efficiency:

Effortless Energy | Effortless Energy integrates innovative finance with technology and marketing to make energy efficiency the no-brainer it ought to be. Ibis Networks | Ibis Networks provides plug-load energy management services and secure data analytics for large commercial organizations. Navatek Ltd. | Navatek Ltd. is reducing the cost of wind energy by increasing efficiency with on-blade actuators. Open Power Quality | Open Power Quality is the catalyst for crowd sourcing power quality data collection. Oroeco | Oroeco is developing a social platform to empower users to align their personal values with their everyday spending, investment, and lifestyle decisions. People Power | People Power turns smartphones into smart homes by enabling homeowners to control and monitor all of their electrical devices. Pono Home | Pono Home helps people reduce their utility costs through auditing, infrastructural changes, and occupant education, all in a one-time service. Pyro-E | Pyro-E is harvesting vehicular and industrial waste heat to improve the energy-use efficiency of the U.S. and the World.

Transportation and Bioenergy:

Autowatts | Autowatts helps consumers pair the purchase of an electric vehicle with a photovoltaic system for clean and eventually free fuel. TerViva | TerViva develops and commercializes new crops that grow sustainably on underproductive agricultural land.

Learn more about Energy Excelerator and all their exciting energy innovation. Read more about the winners here on TechCrunch and Venture Beat.