ENECHANGE Aims to Achieve a Carbon-Free Society Early By Promoting Energy Technologies Through the Creation of Business Alliance Opportunities

ENECHANGE Ltd. (Head Office: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director & CEO: Yohei Kiguchi; Representative Director & COO: Ippei Arita) has settled on 13 sponsor companies for the 2021 edition of ENECHANGE Insight Ventures (EIV). EIV is our very own energy innovation program: held since 2018, its goal is to promote the energy technology fields needed to make Japan a carbon-free society.

ENECHANGE Insight Ventures was known as Japan Energy Challenge from 2018 to 2020, and officially changed its name in FY2021. Our program, which surveys and links overseas energy ventures to companies in Japan, now aims to expand its user base by becoming a monthly subscription platform.

Outline of EIV2021

The focus of EIV for FY2021 is the Green Growth Strategy, the Japanese government’s plan to make Japan carbon-neutral by 2050. We have started recruiting venture companies from around the world, primarily those from Europe and North America, with advanced technologies in that field. A shortlist of 15 companies will be chosen, and we will hold a number of collaborative discussions and interviews with the ENECHANGE Group and our sponsors. Besides holding exclusive webinars aimed at our sponsors. showcasing three chosen companies each month, we will also provide our own unique corporate analysis reports to these sponsors. We will hold an EIV Summit every six months to select the best companies, with the process to select the winners including further feedback by sponsors and one-to-one interviews.

Host and Operator:

ENECHANGE Ltd., SMAP Energy Limited (ENECHANGE’s U.K. subsidiary)

Sponsors

*Information about participating sponsors is current as of April 1, 2021. Alphabetical order

［Pro Sponsors ］ *eight companies

ENEOS Corporation, KDDI Corporation, Looop Inc., Mitaden Co., Ltd., Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance　 Company, Limited, Nihon Unisys, Ltd., Panasonic Corporation, Tohoku Electric Power Co., Inc.

［Basic Sponsors］ *five companies

Hokuriku Electric Power Company, MIRAIT Corporation, Osaka Gas Co., Ltd., Rakuten Energy, Inc., Toho Gas Co., Ltd.

Number of venture companies to be selected

15 (scheduled)

Technology fields

15 companies are scheduled to be selected from 9 categories

1. Offshore wind power (solutions that include operations and management (O&M) related to offshore wind power)

2. Renewable fuels (solutions related to renewable fuels such as hydrogen and ammonia used in coal-fired co-firing. For hydrogen, this includes e.g. hydrogen power generation, fuel cell trucks, and water electrolysis equipment.)

3. Storage batteries, electric vehicles (solutions related to energy storage, including storage batteries. For vehicles, this includes products that can reform how cars are used and services that can accelerate the spread of electric vehicles.)

4. IT (solutions that make use of e.g. big data, AI/ML, and IoT. Includes solutions for green data centers.)

5. Logistics (solutions related to smart transport and green distribution. Includes transport systems and services that emit little CO2 and transport that has been electrified and automated.)

6. Carbon recycling (solutions related to carbon recycling in industrial activities, including carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS).)

7. Housing and office buildings (solutions related to housing and office buildings, including energy management. Includes electric vehicles, storage batteries, air conditioning and other optimization control, new businesses by aggregators or distributors, zero energy houses (ZEH) and zero energy buildings (ZEB), and next-generation solar batteries.)

8. Sustainability (solutions related to sustainable local communities such as resource recycling. Includes energy-from-waste, thermal recycling, and biomass.)

9. Lifestyles (solutions that promote carbon-free businesses locally; total management of homes and travel, electric vehicle and battery sharing; assessment and reporting tools.)

EIV Features

1. Efficient collaboration between overseas and Japanese energy venture companies through this event held jointly by sponsors.

This event will be held jointly by Japan’s leading energy and energy-related companies, enabling them to gather information on energy tech venture companies, and then negotiate investment and business alliances in an efficient and advantageous manner. Entering the Japanese energy market through this channel is one of the most alluring benefits for overseas venture companies. Many promising companies are expected to participate in this event, as it will enable them to develop their business in Japan through alliances with companies participating in EIV. Japanese venture companies can also anticipate opportunities to form alliances with energy (tech) companies and major companies with strong customer bases.

2. Business alliance matching event based on individual negotiations

In principle, energy venture company analysis and alliance negotiations are conducted on an individual basis for each sponsor. This ensures the confidentiality that enables companies to engage in serious discussions and examinations regarding the development of their businesses.

3. Full support system based in London

We will assign a full-time consultant at SMAP Energy’s London base who is familiar with the European and Japanese energy markets to provide support for participating companies by analyzing energy venture companies and examining business plans for expansion in Japan. Our extensive support system will improve the precision of business matchmaking.

Comment from EIV Representative, Yohei Kiguchi (Representative Director and CEO of ENECHANGE Ltd.)

I am very pleased that this program, which started in 2018, has reached its fourth year in 2021. Through our initiatives over the last three years, we have been able to see the latest trends in energy fields overseas, as well as build up our stock of knowledge and strong personal connections.
The effects of COVID-19 have meant that the entire program for 2020 was online, but we were able to use the merits of being online to hold frequent negotiations with overseas venture companies. Specific initiatives related to commercialization with overseas energy venture companies have also proceeded under the radar, and I feel that we are definitely moving the energy industry in Japan a step ahead.
By creating an environment where as many as possible can take part, I am sure that 2021 will also lead to specific actions towards e.g. commercialization. By drawing on the European network we have as a company born in the U.K., and forging paths ahead with our sponsor companies in Japan, we shall continue our efforts to stay ahead of the times in order to embody the Future of Energy. I’m confident we can expect great things from the upcoming EIV 2021.

◎Click here to visit the EIV website

About ENECHANGE Ltd.

ENECHANGE is an energy technology company that promotes a carbon-free society through digital technology with the mission of CHANGING ENERGY FOR A BETTER WORLD. We offer services based on data utilization in the field of the 4 Ds of Energy: Deregulation, Digitalization, Decarbonization, and Decentralization. Our company’s roots come from an energy data lab at the University of Cambridge, UK, a country where liberalization is well advanced. ENECHANGE has a British subsidiary, SMAP Energy Limited, as well as a global network and analytical technology for energy data.

URL: https://enechange.co.jp/en/

■Inquiries
pr@enechange.co.jp