November 15, 2016

Energy Unlocked: eMotorWerks wins EPIC award

Energy Unlocked: Smart energy systems key to delivering UN climate goals.

 

Innovative EPIC winners announced in global energy productivity challenge

EPIC awards

Marrakech, November 15, 2016:  Energy Unlocked – a hub for innovation in global energy systems – today announced the five international winners of its Energy Productivity Innovation Challenge (EPIC) at a World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) side event at the UN climate summit in Morocco.

 

The EPIC 2016 winners announced at COP22 are: ElectraSeed (homes category); Ecolibrium (buildings); eMotorWerks (mobility); AutoGrid (systems); LO3 Energy (energy finance).

 

Over 80 companies entered the 2016 competition from Europe, Africa, South America, North America, Asia and Australia. Finalists for the five EPIC categories – homes, buildings, mobility, systems and finance - were selected by an international jury assessing their impact on productivity, global transferability and innovation. 

 

Energy Unlocked and ClimateWorks launched the EPIC competition earlier this year to champion innovation key to doubling energy productivity by 2030.  Advances in the internet of things (IoT), predictive analytics, real-time data optimization, edge computing, fintech, blockchain and battery storage are creating new demand-side flexibility (DSR) and valuable opportunities to modernize electricity grid systems and help homes, industry and big business use less energy, at lower cost and with a lower carbon footprint.

 

Peter Bakker, President and CEO of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) said: “A smart energy transition is changing the way the world produces, buys and consumes electricity. These five exciting new market entrants represent the kind of innovation that will help drive sustainable energy forward, achieve climate goals and unlock the profitable low carbon economy.”

 

Molly Webb, Energy Unlocked CEO and founder said: “Smarter global energy systems are central to achieving the UN’s climate ambition to limit global warming to ‘well below 2 degrees’.  EPIC innovators are turning climate goals into opportunities for businesses and citizens to profit from energy transition. With almost 100 entrants, we are learning where in the world energy innovation can thrive and how quickly players can drive a new energy economy and find deployment partners in new markets. These companies are not isolated pioneers, but an international alliance urging global leaders to unlock policy change for planet and profit.”

 

Dan Hamza-Goodacre, Director of Energy Efficiency for ClimateWorks Foundation, said: “Our EPIC winners demonstrate ‘win-win’ industrial innovation that can improve grid resilience, empower consumers and boost business profitability at the same time as challenging incumbents by taking the $2.8tn cost reduction pathway to cutting carbon pollution. The Uber of energy is just around the corner."

 

All entries will inform a policy report into energy productivity to be published by Energy Unlocked in 2017.

 

Please see attached sheet for more information and quotes from EPIC 2016 winners.  A full list detailing the 80 international entries and finalists is available at epic.energyunlocked.org/explore/companies.