Six months later and after an extensive journey, the Energy Innovation Hub demo day took place on the 14th of July 2022. 13 startups showcased their innovative solutions and pitched their businesses on stage.
The Energy Innovation Hub aims to enable change in the Lebanese energy sector by providing a platform for startups who are committed to being pioneers of the local energy transition.
The 13 startups who underwent more than 40 hours of training and mentorship are:
- CMU-PCM Tech; a building envelope solution with bio-based materials, offering a passive and latent energy savings strategy that uses thermal energy storage as a thermal envelope
Team members: (Co-founders) Dr. Talal Salem, Chantal Ghaseb, and Dr. Najib Metni - Dibrace-Venar: a manufacturer of budget and high-efficiency biomass stoves used for food cooking and space heating. The stove can be fueled by biomass wood waste from agricultural, forestry, and wood processing industries
Team members: Hisham Ramadan (Founder) - Dox technologies: helping electric vehicle fleet operators reduce inventory costs, battery waste, and sudden failures while optimizing battery testing and maintenance processes
Team members: (Co-founders) Nicolas Jamal and Fred Hatem - Drive Green: an innovative electric transportation solution for electric bikes and battery swapping station using a level 2 charging station powered by solar energy
Team members: (Co-founders) Christelle Bou Harb and Emilio El Hajj - Garbaliser: converts organic household waste to high-quality fertilizer for farmers and households through an anaerobic digestion process. The plant also relies on collecting residue methane gas to transform it into electricity and heat
Team members: (Co-founders) Hanan Ismail and Zeinab Ismail - Necess: an online platform supporting users to reduce their energy bills by analyzing their energy data and recommending necessary modifications, energy efficiency, and renewable energy measures
Team member: Riham Hijazi (Co-founder) - NOW Energy: an online platform supporting users to reduce their energy bills by analyzing their existing systems and recommending necessary modifications including renewable energy solutions
Team member: Mira Ayoub (Co-founder) - Partners with Sun: providing solar boilers and solar convection ovens yielding to 80% fuel bill reduction for bakeries and other food processors
Team members: (Co-founders) Toufic Hamdan and Hitaf Ghazal - PTF – Plastic to fuel: a startup that aims to design and manufacture machines that transform single-use plastic waste into liquid fuel and gas
Team members: (Co-founders) Charbel Sayah and Charbel Abi Doumit - PVBOT Cleaner: an innovative, fast, and fully automated cleaning robot for medium and large-sized PV farms, working 10 times faster than manual labor and requiring no water at all
Team members: (Co-founders) Guy Bejjani and Elie Sebaaly - Suncode: a convective and eco-friendly solar drying solution that allows for a safer, quicker, and easier method for food drying. It is equipped with a fan that runs on solar power and doesn’t require any maintenance or operational inputs
Team members: Haydar Sleiman (Co-founder) and Sarah Hamieh - Wave: offering electric bicycles with a subscription model for citizens to commute in an efficient way. Their batteries are recycled and repurposed at their end-of-life to be used as storage devices for solar panels
Team members: (Co-founders) Jan Willem, Palic van Hövell - YY ReGen: re-energizing the agricultural sector in Lebanon with solar panels. The model relies on a mobile application that offers a simple 3-step workflow: Click, Configure, Sustain. YY Regen is offering a solar PV container that can be deployed at any location within a few hours
Team members: Amer Khayyat (Co-founder), Hasan Jaafar, and Joe Rahme
As a result, the Energy Innovation Hub has supported changemakers, innovators, and problem-solvers by backing them up with early funding, market access, and technical expertise. In addition, our committed team and mentor network has helped startups with early validation and a clear growth plan.
The Energy Innovation Hub program has to date granted $155,000 of funding to its first cohorts who have in turn created 105 jobs across different sectors. The ideas that were invested in are contributing to the transition of Lebanon into a more sustainable economy and energy future.
Co-Funded by the European Union, the United Nations Development Programme has partnered with Nucleus Ventures to execute the Energy Innovation Hub Program, in coordination with Ovation and the Lebanese American University.
