EDP invests in startup with a solution for faster and more efficient solar plant construction
- Based in California, Terabase Energy has developed a technology that reduces the time and cost of building solar power plants through an integrated digital and automated platform.
- EDP Ventures was one of the investors in a €23 million funding round led by Fifth Wall.
Terabase Energy, a US company that has developed the world's first digital and automated solution for building solar power plants in less time and at a lower cost, is EDP Ventures' most recent investment. EDP's corporate venture capital unit was one of the investors that participated in an international financing operation that raised a total amount of €23 million ($25 million). Led by Fifth Wall, this round also included the participation of Prelude Ventures and SJF Ventures.
This investment will be critical to support the commercialization of Terafab, the recent and innovative automated construction system for building solar power plants, and thus contribute to accelerating the expansion of more cost-competitive solar energy on a global scale.
"Terabase is responding to the renewable energy sector’s need to scale faster as it seeks to meet ambitious growth targets over the next several decades," says Luis Manuel, executive board member of EDP Innovation. "It’s bold solutions through digitization and automation will play a meaningful role in increasing the industry’s capacity to build PV power plants more quickly and in more remote locations, aligned with EDP's global commitment to expanding renewables."
The ambitious goals are mirrored by Terabase co-founder and CEO Matt Campbell. "This funding will enable us to expedite the scaling of Terafab production and will ensure that we are equipped to meet the rising demand effectively as we deploy Terafab."
Founded in 2019 with the goal of developing systems that reduce the cost and strengthen the scalability of solar energy projects, Terabase has teams and solutions that support projects from the initial planning and engineering phase to the moments of implementation, technological optimization, procurement and operations. Terabase’s growth is also reflected by the rapid adoption of its construction management software, Construct, being used by leading developers and EPCs on more than 5 Gigawatts of projects. Another digital tool, PlantPredict, has recently surpassed 2.8 TW (2,800,000 MW) of simulations across more than 30,000 projects, thus demonstrating the growing demand for more accurate and efficient modeling of the performance of solar power plants.
For EDP Ventures, this investment represents a significant strengthening of its commitment to innovative solutions and renewable energy, in full alignment with the group's global strategy. With a portfolio that includes 37 companies in Europe, the USA, Latin America, and Asia, EDP Ventures invests in start-ups and fast-growing technology companies to support the development of innovative solutions that actively contribute to the transformation of the energy sector.
