Ecosummit accelerates smart green startups, investors and corporates. Our vision is to automate sustainability in energy, mobility and cities. Our conferences are startup markets enabling business development, co-investing, open innovation, corporate venturing and M&A. At Ecosummit Berlin 2018, we started fundraising the first smart green VC fund in Berlin for the best smart green startups in Europe. Since 2010, we organised 19 international conferences in Berlin (9), Paris (1), London (5), Amsterdam (2), Stockholm (1) and Düsseldorf (1) with over 3.500 participants and 750 startup pitches. Ecosummit TV on YouTube provides 950 videos and surpassed 380K video views.

You are welcome to sponsor and join our next event: Ecosummit Berlin 22-23 May 2019

The Ecosummit LP pitch (PDF) provides details on the investment and fundraising strategy of our new smart green VC fund. Please contact us if you are interested in investing in Ecosummit Ventures or sponsoring Ecosummit Berlin 22-23 May 2019. Sponsor benefits include dealflow generation, portfolio promotion, co-investor networking and fund marketing. All sponsors are invited to the exclusive Ecosummit sponsor dinner on the evening before the conference.

Past Ecosummit sponsors: ECO18 Paris, ECO17 London, ECO17 Stockholm, ECO17 Amsterdam, ECO17 Berlin, ECO16 London, ECO16 Amsterdam, ECO16 Berlin, ECO15 London, ECO15 Berlin, ECO14 London, ECO14 Berlin, ECO13 London, ECO13 Berlin, ECO12 Düsseldorf and ECO12 Berlin.

ECO18 Berlin Gold Sponsors

Smart green accelerator: The Swedish Energy Agency works for a smarter energy use, which involves among other things to channel practically all Swedish state funds that go into energy research. The Business Development and Commercialisation department is focused on making business from this research by bringing together researchers and business developers, contractors, customers and capital. This department also provides their own funding to cases with technical uniqueness, high energy relevance as well as a strong team behind the concept.

Smart green corporate VC: Sustainable energy for everyone. That is what drives Eneco’s endeavours. We are a leading Dutch utility, focused on sustainable, smart energy solutions. We provide for the daily energy needs of over 2.2 million private and business customers through trading, supply and generation, but increasingly by offering smart, decentralized solutions in area’s such as smart home, solar & storage, smart charging etc. Instead of defending old business models, we aim to lead the transition towards more decentralized, sustainable and cooperative energy systems. Eneco Innovation & Ventures is our business unit dedicated to developing new products and services together with business partners and startups. We collaborate with, and invest in, innovative businesses in order to jointly innovate and create commercial success for new smart energy services. We seek technologies and business models that can accelerate our development of sustainable, decentralized, smart energy services. In turn, we can offer scaling opportunities, knowledge and access to markets as well as capital investments as part of our venturing portfolio.

Smart green corporate VC: BayWa r.e. Energy Ventures is a Munich based venture capital firm looking for early stage investment opportunities in the energy market all over Europe and Israel. We focus on scalable business models in the areas of digital energy solutions, storage and e-mobility. BayWa r.e., which began life itself as an innovative new renewable energy business, initially invests up to five million euros in startups and assist with industry expertise, infrastructure and distribution. BayWa r.e. Energy Ventures acts as a standalone business and can guarantee startups maximum independence, quick decisions and flexibility. Focusing on startups in Europe and Israel, the team is led by Ulrich Seitz, a venture capital manager with over ten years of experience on the startup scene. As a wholly-owned subsidiary of BayWa AG, BayWa r.e. renewable energy GmbH combines the activities of the solar energy, wind energy, bioenergy and geothermal energy business sectors. Based in Munich, BayWa r.e. is a globally active company. As a full service partner with over 1,400 employees and more than 25 years of market experience, BayWa r.e. develops, implements, consults and supports projects in the renewable energy sector.

ECO18 Berlin Silver Sponsors

Smart green corporate VC: Under its Cleaner & Better Energy strategy, E.ON’s drive to retail distributed and novel energy technologies and business models will be supported by venture capital activities for strategic partnerships. They are designed to find the next big energy propositions that will improve E.ON’s offer to its millions of customers around Europe via its global and regional businesses. The best new businesses will be selected for collaboration and commercialization opportunities and equity investments. The investments will focus on strategic technologies and business models that enable E.ON’s desire to lead the move to distributed, renewable and disruptive energy propositions. Customers can be offered the best energy choices for their needs. And new technology companies benefit from early scale while E.ON accesses cutting edge innovations and participates in the value created.

Smart green corporate VC: ENGIE develops its businesses (power, natural gas, energy services) around a model based on responsible growth to take on the major challenges of energy’s transition to a low-carbon economy: access to sustainable energy, climate-change mitigation and adaptation and the rational use of resources. The Group provides individuals, cities and businesses with highly efficient and innovative solutions largely based on its expertise in four key sectors: renewable energy, energy efficiency, liquefied natural gas and digital technology. ENGIE employs 153,090 people worldwide and achieved revenues of €66.6 billion in 2016. The Group is listed on the Paris and Brussels stock exchanges (ENGI) and is represented in the main international indices: CAC 40, BEL 20, DJ Euro Stoxx 50, Euronext 100, FTSE Eurotop 100, MSCI Europe, DJSI World, DJSI Europe and Euronext Vigeo (Eurozone 120, Europe 120 and France 20). ENGIE also allocated an investment fund of €115 million dedicated to innovative startups and an investment fund of €50 million committed to energy access.

Enel is a multinational energy company and one of the world’s leading integrated electricity and gas operators. We work in 37 countries across 5 continents, generating energy with a net installed capacity of almost 84 GW, selling gas and distributing electricity across a network spanning approximately 2.1 million km. With around 64 million end users around the world, we have the biggest customer base among our European competitors, and we are one of Europe’s leading energy companies by installed capacity and reported EBITDA. The Enel Group is made up of nearly 63,300 people from around the world whose brilliant work is based on our values of Responsibility, Innovation, Trust and Proactivity. Together we are working on the same goal. We are Open Power and our aim is to overcome some of the greatest challenges facing the world. This is to be achieved through a new approach which combines attention to sustainability with the best in innovation.

Smart green corporate VC: Statkraft is a leading company in hydropower internationally and Europe’s largest generator of renewable energy. The Group produces hydropower, wind power, gas-fired power and district heating and is a global player in energy market operations. Statkraft has 3.600 employees in more than 20 countries. We are managing 1.000s of renewable energy assets with more than 10.000 MW capacity for our clients, integrating their production into the European power market. Statkraft wants to invest into startups in order to create growth options and to drive new capabilities. We are committed to play an active role in the energy market transformation, have an attractive portfolio for applying innovation and maintain a pioneering spirit. This makes us a great partner for startups on the frontier of the energy market‘s paradigm shift. We are aiming to invest in Europe, targeting €1-5M per deal in Series A and later.

Smart green corporate VC: INVEN CAPITAL is a €180M corporate VC fund established by the major European energy utility CEZ to invest in the new energy sector. INVEN CAPITAL seeks investments into small to middle-market innovative cleantech companies from Europe. We target late-stage startups with a business model proven by sales and significant growth potential. We focus on creating long-term value through an active partnership with the management of our portfolio companies. In our approach we actively support strategies for organic and/or acquisition growth. We can provide unique benefits to our portfolio companies and co-investors through (a) in-depth energy sector expertise, (b) utilization of CEZ Group’s client base and (c) technological synergies related to the asset base of our investor. Our investment team represents a balanced mix of skills from the energy sector, structured finance and investment banking. INVEN CAPITAL was founded in 2014 and is based in Prague.

Smart green corporate VC: innogy Ventures is the €130M venture capital arm of the innogy Innovation Hub. We focus on data-driven companies which contribute to the Internet of Things or digital transformation, primarily in Europe, Israel and North America. We run a quick and transparent process and take a collaborative, portfolio-first approach. Each venture is supported with a hands-on attitude, deep market understanding and business development assistance. We offer our portfolio companies access to relevant people and units within the innogy group to help them become more competitive and accelerate their growth.

Vattenfall is a leading European utility and follows a clear strategy towards renewable generation to reduce its carbon footprint considerably. Vattenfall operates more than 1.000 wind turbines with a capacity of around 2.000 MW in Sweden, Denmark, UK, the Netherlands and Germany. It plans to double its renewable capacity by 2020 and is investing more than 5 billion Euros in additional wind and solar generation.

Smart green corporate VC: With a workforce of around 20.000 employees, EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG supplies electricity, gas, water and energy-related products and services to 5.5 million customers. Given our origins, and as a company which is majority owned by the Federal State of Baden-Württemberg and Oberschwäbische Elektrizitätswerke, a municipal special-purpose association, our connections to Baden-Württemberg are particularly strong. We want to be the first point of contact for our customers – households, industry and municipalities – in all matters affecting energy. We will achieve this aspiration on the basis of our experience and innovation strength, combined with listening and dialogue. Close to the customer we are creating new growth opportunities with new products and local solutions for a sustainable supply of energy and enhanced energy efficiency. We will forge ahead with the expansion of renewable energies, first and foremost wind and hydropower, while securing the supply of energy through our cutting-edge conventional power plants. Our grid subsidiaries are setting in place the preconditions for integrating an increasing volume of renewable energies and smart energy systems into the grid.

Smart green corporate VC: Total is the world’s fourth-largest oil and gas company, as well as a major integrated player in low-carbon energies. Backed by nearly a century of history we discover, produce, transform, market and distribute energy in a variety of forms, to serve the end customer. We are committed to energy that is affordable, reliable and clean, in compliance with the highest safety and environmental standards.

Veolia group is the global leader in optimized resource management. With over 174.000 employees worldwide, the Group designs and provides water, waste and energy management solutions that contribute to the sustainable development of communities and industries. Through its three complementary business activities, Veolia helps to develop access to resources, preserve available resources, and to replenish them. In 2015, the Veolia group supplied 100 million people with drinking water and 63 million people with wastewater service, produced 63 million megawatt hours of energy and converted 42.9 million metric tons of waste into new materials and energy. Veolia Environnement (listed on Paris Euronext: VIE) recorded consolidated revenue of €25 billion ($30.3 billion) in 2015. U-Start: A new startup accelerator in Berlin – Veolia Germany launches a program called U-Start in order to initiate long-term cooperation with young startups at an early stage of their development. The focus lies on startups with sustainable services in the fields of water, energy and waste services.

Smart green accelerator & VC: InnoEnergy is the European company dedicated to promoting innovation, entrepreneurship and education in the sustainable energy field by bringing together academics, businesses and research institutes. To support entrepreneurs and startups in sustainable energy we are an active pre-seed/seed investor. Our goal is to make a positive impact on sustainable energy in Europe. We do this by creating future game changers with a different mind-set, and bringing innovative products, services and successful companies to life. We provide acceleration services to startups by supporting entrepreneurs with their business ideas, strengthening their business models, building expert teams, and providing access to finance. We already have a share in more than 50 ventures. InnoEnergy is one of the first Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs) fostered by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT). We are a commercial company with 27 shareholders that include top ranking industries, research centres and universities, all of which are key players in the energy field. More than 150 additional partners contribute to our activities to form a first class and dynamic network that is always open to new entrants and furthers our pursuit of excellence. Although we are profit-oriented, we have a “not for dividend” financial strategy, reinvesting any profits we generate back into our activities. With our headquarters in the Netherlands, we develop our activities across a network of offices located in Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, Poland and Sweden.

Smart green VC: Investitionsbank Berlin (IBB) is the business development bank of Berlin. With a wide product spectrum it is active in the areas of business as well as housing and real estate promotion. IBB supports small and medium-sized enterprises in Berlin with subsidies, loan products and equity stakes developing targeted solutions for its clients. In doing so it works in close cooperation with all local commercial banks. IBB takes a central role in economic development by financing small and medium-sized enterprises. Its particular focus lies on innovative companies that are active in the following key sectors in Berlin: health economy, information and communication technology, media and creative industry, transport, mobility and logistics, energy technology and optical technology. A further focus is the support of founders and startups with targeted advice as well as a full range of funding products customised to the respective need of each client.

Hyperion Executive Search is a specialist headhunter within the clean energy, energy storage, e-mobility and cleantech markets. Our focus is across EMEA. We help our clients achieve their strategic growth and revenue goals by enabling them to attract, attain and retain the key talent they need. In particular we work with post-investment startups and fast growth companies, to recruit high impact leaders, management teams, and sales tigers. We also build full teams, and help our clients set up new territories or product/service lines.

ECO18 Berlin Bronze Sponsors

Smart green corporate VC: Centrica Innovations has been established to invest in new technology and ideas that will transform the way we live, work and move. We’re collaborating with change-makers around the globe, searching for new innovations for homes and businesses, and accelerating ideas from across the Centrica Group. We’re on a mission to invest £100m in new technologies and innovations. We have scouts in key technology hubs around the world who are on the lookout for the most promising new businesses, entrepreneurs and innovators that can join us in shaping all our futures. We’re particularly interested in distributed energy, electrification of transport, and increasing convenience and connectivity through data, blockchain and the Internet of Things.

The EDF Group, one of the leaders in the European energy market, is an integrated energy company active in all areas of the business: generation, transmission, distribution, energy supply and trading. The Group is the leading electricity producer in Europe. In France, it has mainly nuclear and hydraulic production facilities where 95% of the electricity output is CO2-free. The Group generated consolidated sales of €71.2 billion in 2017 serving 37.1 million customers worldwide. In order to succeed in the energy transition and benefit from future innovations, we are reinventing ourselves. Latest development, the creation of a company backed by the Group: EDF Nouveaux Business (New Business). Our goal? Accelerate innovation by investing 40 million euros in 10 startup projects in just 2 years! Our mission? Develop new activities and professions of tomorrow within the Group in France and abroad to better meet the present and future energy needs of our customers, individuals, and local authorities.

Smart green startup: Sonnen is a leading manufacturer of intelligent lithium storage systems. As a pioneer in the rapidly growing solar energy storage market, the company has extensive experience with battery storage technologies and renewable energy. The company has already sold more than 15.000 storage systems in Europe, now has over 100 qualified employees and is actively entering the US market. Sonnen has enjoyed strong growth since its establishment in 2010 and is backed by eCAPITAL, SET Ventures, Munich Venture Partners, Inven Capital, GE Ventures and Envision Energy. Sonnen offers fully integrated storage solutions with a user-friendly energy manager that allows users to individually control their storage system, to track their energy use, optimize the solar self-consumption and avoid peak demand charges.

Smart Green Startup: Kiwigrid, a startup based in Dresden, Germany, develops and operates a modular, turn-key Smart Grid Application Platform. Our products provide the communication infrastructure to connect distributed, renewable energy generators and energy storage systems with small- and large-scale electrical consumers within the Smart Grid. The Kiwigrid Platform provides a variety of Smart Grid solutions which enable our partners to provide their customers with innovative value-added energy services.

Smart green startup: Ubitricity was founded in Berlin in 2008 to develop new services for households with electric vehicles. We are now one of the few independent energy providers in Germany who deliver renewable electricity to households. In the future, ubitricity will offer its customers who drive EVs the possibility to charge up everywhere (e.g. at work) in total security and confidence, and with one single, simple bill to pay. Customers will receive the benefits of a new infrastructure concept – delivery, metering and billing services for green electricity. In 2010, ubitricity was able to win Earlybird, one of Europe’s most successful venture capital investors, for a Series A financing round. ubitricity’s Mobile Metering concept makes a comprehensive charging infrastructure for electric vehicles (EV) affordable. The metering and communications technology necessary for recharging a vehicle is mobilized. It is installed in the EV or inside the charging cable rather than inside every single charging point. As a result, charging points can be reduced to lean and affordable ubitricity system sockets that can easily be installed anywhere users need them, and allow for truly unlimited mobility.

Smart green startup: Shine is a Berlin-based startup that helps consumers make the most of the energy transition by providing them with a seamless energy management and optimisation service.

Smart green startup: DEPsys is a Swiss technology company establishing thought leadership in the energy market. With GridEye, it provides a toolset to the grid operator for a perfect knowledge and control of the low-voltage power grid. This is particularly important in presence of decentralized production from renewable energy sources, such as photovoltaic systems, high loads and/or electric vehicles. The real-time measurement and control solution monitors and stabilizes the network. Moreover, it optimizes power flows to increase energy efficiency and it helps operators with network planning, asset management, and energy scheduling.

Smart green startup: As a software-as-a-service company, GreenCom Networks offers a white label Energy IoT Platform to utilities, energy service companies, and energy-relevant device manufacturers. With its platform GreenCom Networks enables customers to launch disruptive digital business models while leveraging the increasing share of distributed energy assets and end consumers’ demand for innovative services like energy flat rates, energy communities or peer-to-peer energy.

Smart green startup: GreenPocket is a specialist for smart meter and smart home software that empowers people to use energy in the most comfortable and responsible way. Based on a flexible, modular and scalable high performance platform, GreenPocket’s software applications transform complex energy data into a wide range of consumer-oriented benefits for energy control and home automation. With more than 95 successful projects for over 45 national and international utilities and service providers, GreenPocket is one of the leading software companies in the global smart energy market. Founded in 2009, GreenPocket is a privately held company headquartered in Cologne, Germany.

Smart Green Startup: Rockethome is one of the most innovative providers of smart home and energy management systems in Europe. With its advanced software-as-a-service solutions Rockethome helps utilities, telecoms, hardware manufacturers, security providers and other service providers convince their customers of modern smart home services (e.g. security, lighting, heating, air condition, healthcare, energy feed-in and storage, electric vehicles). Rockethome offers a unique user engagement platform for the interpretation, visualization and control of Smart Home and Smart Metering applications. Due to the highly intuitive and added-value applications customers can analyze and visualize their energy consumption as well as control rooms and devices (online, mobile, in-home). It further integrates the monitoring of local solar power or CHP systems and the charging infrastructure of electric vehicles. Rockethome’s unique Behavioral Automation System offers a self-learning solution that adapts automatically to the users’ habits and preferences.

Smart green VC: High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF) is the engine for successful technology startups. With know-how, entrepreneurial spirit and passion, we accompany the best companies from the software, media, internet, hardware, energy and automation as well as life sciences and chemistry sectors on their way to the exit. Rely on us as a strong partner for your success! Over 480 high-tech companies have been launched successfully since 2005. Next to the €886M originating from our own funds (HTGF I, HTGF II and HTGFIII), so far, more than €1.6B of additional capital have been raised into our portfolio in about 1.200 follow-on rounds of financing. Moreover, we successfully exited 89 of our portfolio companies in that same timeframe.

Smart green VC: IP Group is a leading intellectual property commercialisation company which focuses on evolving great ideas, mainly from its partner universities, into world-changing businesses. The Group has pioneered a unique approach to developing these ideas and the resulting businesses by providing access to business building expertise, capital (through its 100%-owned FCA-authorised subsidiary IP Capital), networks, recruitment and business support. IP Group has a strong track record of success and its portfolio comprises holdings in approximately 100 early-stage to mature businesses across four main sectors – Biotech, Cleantech, Healthcare and Technology. The Company is listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange under the code IPO.

Smart green VC: Munich Venture Partners (MVP) is one of Europe`s leading Cleantech Venture Capital specialists located in Munich, Germany. Founded in 2005 and cooperating in a long tradition as preferred partner with Fraunhofer Gesellschaft (Europe’s largest application-oriented research organization), MVP focusses on growth investments in the technology sectors sustainable environmental and energy technologies, green ICT, energy efficiency, agriculture and food, mobility, and sustainable materials. The investment portfolio spans all over Europe, including selected international businesses. MVP is a partner in the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme led by the European Commission. Munich Venture Partners is convinced that the combination of exceptional entrepreneurs with innovative technologies is the key to a bright future of our society.

Smart green VC: Systemiq was founded on the principle that positive disruption is required to combat climate change. Through our own investment vehicle, we support disruptive early stage technology ventures with the potential to transform systems across energy, sustainable land use and circular economy. We invest long-term balance sheet capital in Seed/Series A companies with scalable, IP-driven solutions.

Life Size Media is a communications consultancy working exlusively in cleantech and sustainable innovation. We provide fully integrated campaigns that combine public relations with design, marketing, digital and film to achieve our client’s commercial objectives. We believe that a good story can change the world, and we only tell those stories for companies that we genuinely want to see succeed. Our mission is to help breakthrough technologies realise their potential to help build a better future.

Alexa Capital delivers leading capital solutions across the energy, energy infrastructure and technology sectors. Our professionals have unique energy market sector insights built up over three decades of working across Europe, North America and Asia in energy, technology & communications investment banking, fund management and private equity. We can leverage global relationships across the corporate landscape, the investment community and government policymakers.

Clermount is an advisory firm with offices in London and Paris dedicated to the impact investing space. We support companies that push the boundaries of innovation to address environmental, economic and social challenges at scale. We help them raise growth capital by developing solid investment cases and leveraging our global network of entrepreneurs, family offices, financial and corporate investors. Our clients are mainly active in the energy transition, energy access, advanced mobility and smart city sub-sectors in which our team has developed strong expertise.