Finalists for InnoEnergy’s PowerUp! Challenge

The national final of the PowerUp! Challenge, for the acceptance of energy start-ups in this European acceleration and business development program, will take place online, on May 22nd.

The competition is organized internationally by EIT InnoEnergy, the engine for sustainable energy transformation in Europe. In Romania, InnoEnergy is represented by the national hub formed by the following companies: REPOM, in partnership with Iceberg, Green Energy Cluster and PATRES, as organizers of the competition at national level.

People interested in participating in the event that will take place online can register on the InnoEnergy platform, using this link: https://bit.ly/2T1y5SH.

425 early-stage companies from 24 Central-Eastern European nations, registered to EIT InnoEnergy’s PowerUp! Challenge. Out of them, 29 are from Romania. The Challenge offers the opportunity of multi-million-euro investments to innovative ventures and the possibility to join the EIT InnoEnergy network. These companies can get a variety of support opportunities such as product enhancement and development, pilot projects, commercialization strategies, international market introduction, expansion, and further funding opportunities. The most promising start-ups, scale-up companies and energy SMEs in Central and Eastern Europe will be funded.

Among the Challenge applicants, this year will see a record number of 360 eligible start-ups competing for the national title Start-up of the Year in their respective countries. In Romania, were preselected 5 promising start-ups, with projects from areas such as electric mobility, new concepts regarding electric charging stations, smart metering, smart heat hub, etc., which will pitch for this national title. They will pitch their projects to the jury, online, on May 22, and only one start-up will be selected for the international phase. The teams that will compete for the PowerUp international title! Challenge have the chance to win financial prizes of up to 65,000 euros and other valuable offers from key partners such as: Amazon Web Services, Revolut or SpeedUp Group.

“It was a decision call if we wanted to proceed with our event despite the Europe-wide lockdown aimed at containing the COVID-19 virus,” says InnoEnergy Central Europe’s CEO, Jakub Miler. “We decided to go ahead precisely because of it – although doing everything online safely and responsibly. We want to keep supporting innovative ventures to help them survive, develop, and thrive at a time when the economic outlook is rather grim. While many channels and sources on the market might dry up for them, with the backing of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology we are here to continue our support of innovative entrepreneurs with financials, know-how, and valuable partnerships.”

On his turn, Ionut Tata, hub manager of the InnoEnergy’s local hub, added: “We strongly need signs of continuity during these times of uncertainty. And EIT InnoEnergy is doing just that for innovative start-ups and companies in Romania, too. We are happy to host online the national final of PowerUp! Challenge.”

The five companies from Romania enrolled for the country final of PowerUp! Challenge will pitch online their projects on May 22, starting with 12:00 PM EEST. Any interested person can join the online event by clicking here. A jury formed of three experts will designate the national finalist.

The decision about the timing and venue of the international Grand Final will be determined in the upcoming period depending on the status of the government event restrictions within the region.

 

About EIT InnoEnergy

EIT InnoEnergy is the innovation engine for sustainable energy across Europe. It supports and invests in innovation at every stage of the journey – from classroom to end-customer. With its network of partners, EIT InnoEnergy builds connections across Europe, bringing together inventors and industry, graduates and employers, researchers and entrepreneurs, businesses and markets.

EIT InnoEnergy works in three essential areas of the innovation mix:

• Education to help create an informed and ambitious workforce that understands the demands of sustainability and the needs of industry;
• Innovation Projects to bring together ideas, inventors and industry to create commercially attractive technologies that deliver real results to customers;
• Business Creation Services to support entrepreneurs and start-ups who are expanding Europe’s energy ecosystem with their innovative offerings.

Bringing these disciplines together maximises the impact of each, accelerates the development of market-ready solutions, and creates a fertile environment in which EIT InnoEnergy can sell the innovative results of their work.

EIT InnoEnergy was established in 2010 and is supported by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT).

 

About InnoEnergy’s local hub

InnoEnergy is represented in Romania by Iceberg, REPOM, Green Energy Cluster and PATRES. The role of InnoEnergy Hub Romania is to support innovators, researchers, start-ups and companies active in the energy related fields to develop, improve, scale and internationalize their products and services. In parallel, the hub seeks to contribute to strengthening the national innovation ecosystem, through services, financing programs, investment facilities and network know-how. All of these will contribute to strengthening the energy sector in Romania and Europe.

InnoEnergy Hub Romania headquarter is located in Brasov, and is also having an office in Bucharest.