Withthegrid, a Netherlands-based company that develops secure technology for infrastructure assets, grid operators, energy producers and users to monitor their assets in real-time, is expanding on multiple fronts.
Founded in 2016, the energy analytics company has not only expanded its advisory board, it has also entered into strategic contracts with companies to deliver end-to-end energy management systems.
According to company sources, Withthegrid has brought on board Sophie Dingenen, lawyer and partner at Bird & Bird, and René Raaijmakers, board member in several large energy corporations and former CEO of Groendus, an environment renewable natural resources company based in Utrecht, Netherlands. They are expected to offer perspective on everything, from making introductions to sources of financing to targeting niche markets and forming partnerships with market leaders.
Significantly, the company has joined hands with Tibo Energy. Through energy forecasts and smart control, Tibo manages assets such as heat pumps, charging stations, and battery storage and prevent congestion in energy networks.
It is also partnering with Scholt, an energy company that helps facilitate the energy transition by maximising renewable energy consumption and using all renewable and industrial flexibility. They’ve also signed a deal with Vattenfall, one of Europe’s largest retailers and producers of electricity and heat, to provide a Realtime Interface at four different locations.
Withthegrid offers two products – an Asset Monitoring Platform that helps grid operators monitor critical infrastructure, and the Teleport Gateway, a smart solution used by asset owners to unlock the flexibility of their solar panels, wind turbines, batteries and more.
Co-founder & CEO, Paul Mignot, is upbeat on future prospects: “We are focused on continuing our growth trajectory and expanding our market reach not only in the Netherlands, but also across Europe. We are present across the European Union and exploring prospects in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. With renewable energy as the future, our expansion plans are meant to scale our capacities as we foresee an unprecedented and inevitable rise in renewable energy demands. Crucially, our journey so far has been powered by investors whose belief in our venture has made it possible to grow. Boundary Holding’s investment in 2021 showcased their ability to recognize the immense growth potential of Withthegrid from the outset. This has been instrumental in aligning with our vision”.
Boundary Holding, Dutch regional development agency – ROM Utrecht Region, and a small group of industry veterans and venture capitalists have so far jointly invested over EUR 1 million in Withthegrid. The investment enabled the company to commercialize its services and gain resources to further develop innovative software and anomaly detection algorithms.
Rajat Khare, founder of Boundary Holding, a deep-tech investment firm based out of Luxembourg that bets big on clean technologies and renewable energy ideas, said: “Europe is determined to have a greener future, but that’s only possible through the strengthening of our energy infrastructure companies. One of the ways is through partnerships between energy-producing companies and those that monitor energy assets in real-time. By providing immediate insights into energy utilization, real-time monitoring systems enable companies to track and scrutinize the performance and efficiency of their infrastructure. They also open opportunities for cost-cutting and improved energy allocation”.
The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA), in a report published recently, revealed that buildings and structures that applied real-time energy management systems were likely to save $13.5 million over the course of the contract. This accounts for a 41% reduction in total energy use and 3,100 metric tons of carbon reduction, annually.
The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) advocates that regular monitoring can lead to a 10-20% reduction in energy consumption.
IBM reported a 30% energy savings in its data centers through real-time monitoring and predictive analytics as part of their Smarter Buildings initiative.
Awareness around this issue of the present and the future is growing. But as climate change and its deadly impact threatens us at an unprecedented rate, there should be a greater hurry to move in this direction.