Repsol Foundation incorporates seven new startups in the 13th edition of its Entrepreneurs Fund

• Today, in the 13th edition of its Entrepreneurs Fund, the Repsol Foundation presented seven new startups that will be accelerated for one year.
• In his opening speech, the executive managing director of the Repsol Foundation, António Calçada, highlighted “the importance of having initiatives that support energy startups, especially the most industrial, so they reach the market and allow us to continue driving the energy transition.”
• Repsol Foundation has been driving innovative tech solutions for over a decade for the energy transition, and the Entrepreneurs Fund is now a renowned, well-established, and efficient initiative for accelerating the energy transition. 
• The selected companies will receive financial support for one year, of up to 120,000 euros, in the form of a convertible loan and will be able to carry out pilot tests in a real environment, in facilities or with Repsol businesses.
• They will also have 12 months of expert mentoring, with an acceleration team specially assigned to each startup, made up of high-level experts in technology, business, and the market.
• All of them offer innovative solutions for the energy transition related to the circular economy, energy efficiency, water management, renewable energy, natural solutions, advanced mobility, and carbon capture and management.
• Once again, this year, the Repsol chairman, Antonio Brufau, attended the event on entrepreneurship in technological innovation.

Today, Repsol Foundation presented the seven startups selected for the 13th edition of its international business accelerator, the Entrepreneurs Fund. These companies have been chosen after an exhaustive assessment process of the proposals received. 

These projects will receive up to 120,000 euros in financial support for one year in the form of a convertible loan, as well as advice from Repsol's team of professional mentors and technology experts with extensive experience and knowledge in both the energy sector and high-value businesses management, which increase the chances of success for those chosen.They will also have the opportunity to validate their initiatives in a real environment, and in some cases, pilot testing at Repsol's facilities and industrial plants, or concept tests at the Repsol Technology Lab, the multi-energy company’s technological and innovation center.

In his opening speech, António Calçada, executive managing director of the Repsol Foundation, highlighted that: “Innovation is a basic pillar of technological development and thanks to entrepreneurs like those here today, we'll be able to move towards a more decarbonized, sustainable world and make better use of resources. That's why it's essential to support these emerging companies with disruptive ideas and projects.” 

In this sense, Calçada has highlighted the extremely high-value acceleration program offered by the Entrepreneurs Fund “We understand that for these technological developments to really reach the market, in addition to being technically validated, they must go supported by a solid business model and business project that guarantees its competitiveness and sustainability over time.”

During the event, a round table was held where Ignasi Ferrer, whose project was accelerated in the 12th edition, and CEO of Ocean Ecostructures; Alfonso Revilla, mentor and former corporate director of Repsol; Berta Moreno, senior H2 and Synthetics scientist at Repsol; Carlos Gutiérrez, technology scientist for Low Carbon Generation at Repsol; and Homayoun Bagheri, senior manager of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the Repsol Foundation all took part.

The participants talked about the role each one plays as a mentor of the Entrepreneurs Fund and what they contribute from their field to the startups during their acceleration. Carlos Gutiérrez pointed out that: “At Repsol Low Carbon Generation, we promote the future and technological innovation, and we collaborate with the Entrepreneurs Fund. Our division of renewable energy participates in carrying out pilot tests in real environments to make business ideas a success, which allow for progress in the economy's decarbonization.” 

For Ignasi Ferrer, selected in the 12th edition, the passage through the Entrepreneurs Fund “has been a catalyst that has allowed us to level up, both operationally, in terms of improving processes, protocols, and organization, and for our reputation, in terms of visibility and recognition; both fundamental aspects for a startup. With this support, we have grown tenfold in size, and built the foundations to carry out a robust scale-up process.”  

Alfonso Revilla highlighted the relevance of having a team of expert mentors trained in the company “who've got experience in the business, and who can give practical advice on a business model's viability and how to scale-up a value proposition.”

Berta Moreno pointed out the importance of having expert company mentors for the value they bring to startups: "By participating as mentors in the accelerator we have the opportunity to accompany entrepreneurs in developing their projects, and contribute our experience and knowledge as potential end-users of the technology".

Homayoun Bagheri highlighted “the diversity of technological and business proposals that are evaluated every year. In addition, we observe the increasing level of sophistication in the technological and financial skills of the teams that produce them.”

The event was also attended by the historian Nacho Soriano, who shared a motivational talk with all attendees. Soriano explained how the key milestones in the history of Humanity are related to entrepreneurship and how they can serve as inspiration for success.

Startups selected in the 13th edition

The proposals received in this edition stood out for their quality, especially those focused on fields such as natural solutions for reducing the carbon footprint, low-emission technologies, energy efficiency, the circular economy, advanced mobility, or renewable energies. 

As an accelerator focused on the energy transition and high-impact, the Entrepreneurs Fund has decided to concentrate its resources and the dedication of its acceleration teams on a small number of startups in order to offer each of them a tailored-made high-value design, which increases their chances of success. 

In this edition, seven startups will be accelerated by the Entrepreneurs Fund: 

• COOLING FOTONICS (Spain): Film coatings for passive infrared radiation cooling.
• ELECTRÓGENOS (UK): Advanced catalysts for alkaline electrolysis cells for hydrogen production​.
• IMAGERYST (Spain): Easy-to-use platform for the processing and presentation of geolocated satellite image data.
• INTEMIC (Spain): Software platform for the optimization of complex industrial processes through the integration of real-time data.
• PURIFIRE LABS (UK): Conversion of organic waste into methanol through hydrothermal gasification.
• ROSEO (Spain): Mini-wind power generation facilities in urban environments.
• SMALLOPS (Spain): Recovery of olive oil wastes and by-products through the production of nanoparticles and biogas.

Driving the future of energy for over a decade 

The Repsol Foundation has been supporting entrepreneurship for 13 years, with a focus on new technologies in the field of energy. It is now a renowned and effective initiative for driving the development of the most innovative solutions, thus doing its bit to speed up the energy transition.

Since its launch in 2011, the Entrepreneurs Fund has contributed to the development of 77 innovative start-ups specialized in the energy transition, with a survival rate of over 70%.

Over the years, the companies accelerated by the Repsol Foundation have developed more than 950 prototypes and pilot projects, registered more than 200 patents, and obtained over 450 million euros in public and private funding. Three startups that were accelerated by the Entrepreneurs Fund have ended up taking on Repsol Corporate Venturing as a stakeholder: 

• FINBOOT (Spain): Blockchain solutions for energy contract tracking.
• ALERION (Spain): Drones used in predictive inspection and maintenance of assets. 
• TROVANT TECHNOLOGIES (Spain): Technology for upgrading biogas to biomethanol.