Startup
Every investor coverage indicates participated in a round Essential Energy raised.
| Investor | Rounds | Invested |
|---|---|---|
| Australian Government | Grant | - |
| Federal Government | Grant | - |
Companies Essential Energy acquired or merged with, per published coverage. Buying a company is not investing in one: nothing here counts in the deals column.
| Name | Role | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| Luke Jenner | Chief Operating Officer | Startup Daily |
Stories naming Essential Energy. Where several outlets covered the same round, they are bundled under whichever ran the fullest account.
Energy AI startup Gridsight, co-founded by NSW childhood friends, has raised a $36 million round led by New York's Insight Partners as it expands into the US; Endeavour Energy is among its customers.
Also Capital Brief·Startup Daily·Dealroom·SmartCompany·Cut Through Venture·Startup Daily
Australian grid-modelling startup Neara raised a $90 million Series D led by TCV, valuing the company above $1 billion, funding ML and expansion.
Fourteen projects won grants under the federal government's Grid Enhancing Technologies program, including EV charging firms Jet Charge and Charge Hub Australia, to show how EVs and other tech can ease grid constraints.
Also RenewEconomy
ARENA grants $3 million to EDP Renewables Australia for a community microgrid combining solar and storage in Braidwood, NSW, meant to keep the bushfire-prone town supplied when the grid fails.
Neara joins the unicorn club after a TCV-led $90 million Series D at a $1.1 billion valuation, with existing backers participating; funds will fuel global expansion and engineering hires.
ARENA announces grants for three electric-vehicle charging projects, with Flow Power the largest recipient, and reports grant recipient Zenobē has opened a Sydney depot for charging electric trucks.
NSW has granted grid access in its Central-West Orana renewable energy zone to ten wind, solar and storage projects totalling over 7 GW; winners include Squadron Energy, Tilt Renewables, Acen and Lightsource bp.
Weekly roundup of eight Australian startup raises, led by Sonder's $40 million round, plus AMP's $20 million raise and acquisition of the Shopify app Back in Stock.
Also Startup Daily·Defence Connect·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Defence Connect·Forbes Australia
Brisbane-based EcoJoule Energy has brought in $15 million from investors Ellerston Capital and Fifth Estate Asset Management, its first institutional money, to fund manufacturing expansion and international growth.
ARENA commits $2.4 million to EVX for 250 kerbside EV chargers across three Australian states, funded through the Driving the Nation Program, with electricity distributors and a retailer supporting the rollout.
Also @AuManufacturing
Round-up reporting Neara's $45 million Series C, Alimetry's US$18 million Series A2, Earthodic's US$4 million seed, and Antler's latest residency intake of startups each receiving $225,000 for 12% stakes.
Also Startup Daily
Neara, an Australian AI infrastructure startup, raised $45 million led by EQT, Partners Group and Square Peg Capital, with Skip Capital and Prosus Ventures returning; funds target North American and European expansion.
RenewEconomy profiles Komo Energy's community-backed Grong Grong solar farm as it starts feeding the grid, recounting its crowdfunding and government grant support, battery plans, and lessons on networks and shared ownership for small developers.
TechCrunch profiles Neara, an Australian startup whose AI models of electricity networks help utilities predict and manage extreme-weather risks, naming its investors and utility customers.
Square Peg partner James Tynan interviews Neara's chief commercial officer Jack Curtis on the company's 3D modelling of energy networks, doubling grid capacity, and constraints on the energy transition.
Square Peg's blog runs a conversation from its 2023 AGM in which partner James Tynan interviews Neara's chief commercial officer Jack Curtis about the company's grid-modelling software and the energy transition.
A Geni.Energy author reflects on its federally funded Narrabri community battery trial, covering delivery costs, retail ambitions, tariff negotiations with the local network owner, and why community groups must stay involved.
Neara, an energy-sector digital twin platform, has raised a $15.25 million Series B extension with Prosus Ventures leading and prior backers Square Peg and Skip Capital returning, to fund US and European expansion.
Sydney AI infrastructure-modelling firm Neara extended its Series B by $10M, with Prosus Ventures joining backers Skip Capital and Square Peg, lifting the round to $24M for expansion into Europe and the US.
OIF Ventures' newsletter announces leading Nullify's pre-seed round, two investment team hires, portfolio company awards and product launches, and Go1's acquisition of Anders Pink.
Skip Capital, backed by Scott Farquhar and Stonepeak, raised its bid for ASX-listed renewable energy firm Genex Power to $0.25 per share, valuing it at $348 million; the board will now consider due diligence.
ARENA is granting $2.6 million to Queensland's Luceo Energy for the SHIELD project, a data platform helping network providers manage distributed energy resources, with five project partners assisting.
Also RenewEconomy