More energy out of the wind: Graz-based green tech eologix receives million-euro investment
eologix, Austrian market leader for ice detection on wind turbines, develops sensors that measure directly on the rotor blade surface, making renewable energies even more attractive. With new international investors, novel applications and internationalization are now to be driven forward.
Graz, Austria: Renewable energies can ensure a secure energy future. The Graz-based green tech eologix sensor technology gmbh wants to contribute by making wind power even more attractive with its sensor systems and has raised a million-euro investment for this purpose. The current round brings in 6 million euros, and with it the founders are also bringing new investors on board.
The fresh capital comes from Emerald Technology Ventures as lead. Co-investors are Nabtesco Ventures and Orlen VC. The existing investor Phoenix Contact Innovation Ventures is also investing in this financing round. “We are particularly pleased that this successful journey continues, as eologix was our first investment at Phoenix Contact Innovation Ventures in 2016“, states Marcus Böker, managing director at Phoenix Contact Innovation Ventures. eologix intends to invest the money in international growth and, first and foremost, to greatly expand the team.
Next stop: USA
With the fresh capital, the green tech wants to take the next step towards internationalization. Currently, eologix sensor technology gmbh is mainly active in Europe. Soon, the Green Tech also wants to expand in the USA with additional new applications, as the founders reveal. “We have grown well in recent years. We are now pleased to have brought international investors on board to support us for our next important growth step,” says Thomas Schlegl, CEO and CO-founder of eologix sensor technology gmbh.
How the eologix sensors work
The special feature of eologix is the wireless and energy-autonomous sensor, which measures directly on the blade surface, and detects even the smallest changes such as temperature, ice formation, imbalances, etc. This works, for example, as follows: “On a wind turbine equipped with our sensor system, the turbine stops automatically in the event of safety-relevant ice accumulation on the rotor blades, and after an “ice-free” detection, the turbine re-starts automatically. In this way, turbine downtimes are reduced to a minimum – allowing more electricity to be generated from a single turbine,” explains Michael Moser, CTO and CO-founder.
Boosting sustainable technologies
2021 was a good year for eologix. In addition to the largest single order in the company’s history, preventive heating is also becoming more and more important. Since its founding in 2014, the company has installed more than 700 sensor systems. The investors also see potential in expanding the business model: “We are excited to support the eologix team and see great potential in further developing the business into other areas of automated condition monitoring,” said Charles Vaslet, Senior Partner at Emerald Technology Ventures.
Thomas Schlegl, CEO and CO-founder at eologix sensor technology gmbh, added: “If we want to drive the energy transition, we need to make renewable energies even more attractive and profitable. eologix makes a significant contribution to increasing the performance of wind turbines with its sensor technology and offers customers and ultimately our society significant added value.”
The available new capital will not only be used to accelerate international expansion, but also to drive further product development. The future goal, he said, is to become a leading provider in the field of rotor blade monitoring. Or like our mission statement summarizes >We boost sustainable technologies to secure a sustainable future<.
About eologix
eologix sensor technology gmbh is a technology-based company located in Graz, Austria. Founded in 2014, it is developing and producing innovative, retrofittable sensor solutions for wind turbine blades.
eologix focuses on rotor blade monitoring with innovative sensor systems for ice detection, temperature measurement, pitch angle monitoring and more – directly measuring on the blade surface to increase performance and extend the service life of wind turbines.
The firm is dedicated to boosting sustainable technologies to secure a sustainable future. With the innovative sensor solutions, they create sustainable values for their customers and the environment. For more information, please visit www.eologix.com.
About Emerald Technology Ventures
Emerald is a globally recognized venture capital firm building a sustainable future at the crossroads of industry and technology. Founded in 2000, it is a pioneer in open innovation, providing multi-national corporations with rich deal flow and insight in the sectors and markets of tomorrow. Emerald has managed and advised assets of over €1 billion from its offices in Zurich, Toronto and Singapore. The firm is dedicated to tackling big challenges in climate change and sustainability via over 500 venture transactions and five third-party investment mandates, including loan guarantees to over 100 start-ups. For more information, please visit www.emerald-ventures.com.
Contact
Esther Jobst
eologix sensor technology gmbh
Tel.: +43 (0)316 931215 500
E-Mail: press@eologix.com
Contact for Emerald
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Links to the websites of all investors
Emerald Technology Ventures
https://emerald-ventures.com/
Nabtesco Technology Ventures
https://nabtesco-ventures.com/
Orlen VC
https://www.orlen.pl/
Phoenix Contact Innovation Ventures
https://www.phoenixcontact-innovationventures.com/