Renewable energy is more than just a buzzword. With many worrying about the US' shift away from focusing on climate change in recent years, it seems that there are still startups in America striving to push for affordable, renewable power. Ecolectro is one such company still making strides to this day.
Why Clean Energy?
Green or clean energy innovation is poised to divert energy production away from fossil fuels. These fuels, such as oil and coal, are in short supply. What's more, the means of claiming such resources are proving to be harmful to the environment.
Renewable, green energy can be expensive. Ultimately, this is where companies such as Ecolectro are striving to make it accessible and affordable for all.
Who Are Ecolectro?
Ecolectro has been part of the renewable startups scene since 2015. While renewable energy has been hugely investable since long before this time, this Ithaca-based firm helped to bring affordable, sustainable energy to the forefront of our attention.
In the years since founding, Ecolectro has continued to persist with three key members a main investor in Launch NY. They specialize in membrane replacements in a variety of energy production technology. Specifically, Ecolectro offers cost-effective membranes to help support hydro-electricity generation.
Hydro-electricity is renewable and a fantastic concept. However, it relies on the precious metal, platinum, to regenerate. Therefore, Ecolectro saw an opportunity to produce a more efficient, cost-effective way to produce energy from water alone.
Ecolectro has focused on replacing costly, sometimes inefficient perfluoro-sulfonic acid polymers (PFSA) fittings, which are commonplace across hydropower generators. This, the company assures, will help to make renewable power affordable for the masses.
What Are Their Key Stats?
Of course, to measure how much of an effect Ecolectro is making on the world around us, we need to consider key statistics.
As of 2020, Ecolectro has received at least $1.8 million in private funding. One of their most recent funding rounds took place in March this year. At this juncture, the company received a boost of $25,000. These are steady, slow-burning figures which show keen momentum behind the scenes.
In fact, figures show that Launch NY are the key investors in the firm. This is no bad thing; startups can grow hugely successful from one or two vendors alone.
However, the Department of Energy has also helped to fund Ecolectro's activities. At the end of 2018, the firm received a healthy boost to help make hydrogen production more efficient. Therefore, it's clear that there are powerful bodies sitting up and taking notice.
What Will This Mean for Other Startups?
The clean energy sphere is one that is likely to be popular thanks to the growing interest in sustainability. The world is continuing to struggle as a result of depleting resources.
Therefore, investors could take inspiration from Ecolectro and look for their own renewable energy projects. It's entirely possible to find such startups through databases such as Fundz, for example. This way, budding investors will always be able to see where a company has come from – and where it may be going – before putting their money into the future of sustainable power.
SOURCES
https://www.azom.com/article.aspx?ArticleID=19530
https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2020/08/alumni-fueled-startups-pitch-clean-energy-solutions
https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/ecolectro
https://www.ecolectro.com/technology
https://ourworldindata.org/renewable-energy
