South African green-tech startup Brayfoil Technologies has won the Energy Investment Village pitch competition at the GEA Summit. Brayfoil is a company that makes turbine blades that change shape when there is less load on them. This lets devices be bigger, more effective, more reliable, and cheaper.
The aerospace, automobile, sailing, and wind energy industries may all benefit from the company’s technologies. After they won, the Brayfoil team met with potential investors more than once outside of the GEA Summit.
Ten clean-energy start-ups pitched their business concepts at the Energy Investment Village event to possible investors, participants, and judges.
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GEA Summit
The Energy Investment Village was created by Saldanha Bay Innovation Campus, RIIS, and GEA Summit to create the Energy Investment Village. The program helps South African businesses obtain overseas project funding.
The pitch event attracted $100 billion in international investors. Several startup-investor interactions have started and will continue.
Brayfoil Technologies earned R20 000 from FNB, an ASBN membership for a year, and a half-day of branding and marketing training.
After reviewing the finalists, Sasol and the JSE will give two more prizes. Prizes include a spot in the 2024 JSE Enterprise Accelerator Program and a R100,000 Sasol Enterprise Supplier Development Program.
The startup ideas were judged by a team of eight people who looked at things like creativity and business value, among other things.
Wesgro is a senior portfolio manager, technology Eimear Costigan, Sasol senior vice president, business services Grace Nndwammbi, Sasol senior vice president, Commercial Energy Solutions Phinda Vilakazi, IDC business development executive David Sekgororwana, JSE head of CX and strategic initiative incubation Cleola Kunene, JSE head of origination and deals Samuel Mokorosi, and TIA’s head of innovation, skills development, and enterprise Senisha Moonsamy served as
The other finalists were:
- Keren Energy, SA’s first green hydrogen producer.
- Atlanthia’s green hydrogen and ammonia.
- Hydrofuels, plasma waste gasification solution.
- Oceanergy, the Kite Fuel Ship developer.
- SeaH4, a biofuel made from algae.
- SlideLuvre, a sophisticated sun-tracking system for solar energy efficiency.
- Impact-Free Water’s pump harnesses wave energy to pressurize and push saltwater for desalination and electricity
- Zimi Charge, electric fleet charging through the app.
- Meta Technologies’ air-quality sensor
Paul Sinclair, vice president for energy at Africa Oil Week and GEA Summit.
This live-pitching component of the program surpassed our expectations by exposing creative clean-energy start-ups to prospective investors and enabling dialogues that will continue beyond the Summit. We plan to host next year.
The Energy Investment Village is a cooperation between the Saldanha Bay Innovation Campus and the Research Institute for Innovation and Sustainability. Hyve Group’s CEO for Southern Africa, Belinda Williams, said that the Energy Investment Village shows real projects and new energy solutions in South Africa. The interest and attendance at the event highlighted the enthusiasm for much-needed business and social development on the African continent. We look forward to enhancing this initiative next year.
