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Wattwatchers devices are already installed and cutting users' carbon emissions in 20 countries, but a recent Series B capital raise led by Kilara Capital means the Sydney-based company will be well placed to capture a greater market share.
The $5.8 million Series B included a $5.3 million contribution from Melbourne-based Kilara as well as a $500,000 participation from the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC), which was involved in a foundational capital raise in 2017 and has pumped $2.5 million into the enterprise to date.
Co-founded in 2007 by Chris Bean and Jon Keeble, alongside a founding group that also included Murray Hogarth and the late Paul Wiszniak, Wattwatch has tapped into the Zeitgeist of decarbonisation with its data-backed devices that help smart homes and businesses better control energy resources.
The group claims each device installed saves on average at least one tonne of carbon emissions over its operating life, and at present there are 50,000 deployed commercially worldwide.
The latest investment will be used to further accelerate international expansion, scaling up Australian manufacturing and aggressively developing new products including data services, with the end goal to double and then triple sales to achieve installations of 50,000-plus devices each year.
"We are positioned to become the absolute leader in energy technology both here in Australia and globally – especially with focused energy incentives in the UK, EU and USA," says Wattwatchers CEO Gavin Dietz.
"Having energy data helps households to save on electricity costs in multiple ways, and quickly adds up to hundreds of dollars a year.
"The typical three-bedroom freestanding home can save hundreds of dollars each year just by shifting their energy use and energy waste through the use of data."
Dietz highlights nearly a quarter of Australian homes have rooftop solar.
"These homes are in a great position to use data to boost the return on their investment in renewable generation – with savings of $500-$1,000 a year through cutting waste, getting on the best plan, and above all optimising electricity use to maximise self-consumption of their own free-from-the-sun electrons," he says.
"The greatest value from having your own energy data is the optimisation for an all-electric future.
"The ability to leverage demand management programs and incentives as well as optimising home batteries will pretty much make your home a virtual power plant."
Kilara Capital managing director Ben Krasnostein says Wattwatchers has proven itself as an enduring and growing smart energy company in Australia and globally.
"Our investment will take it to the next level as we seek to generate an excellent financial return, but also contribute significantly to the decarbonisation of the electricity grid," Krasnostein says.
"With the world rapidly moving on from large-scale thermal generation and one-way distribution of electricity, to large-scale renewables, smaller-scale distributed generation and electrification of mobility, the investment from Kilara has come at an important time for Wattwatchers.
"Taking on key investments in companies which can make a significant scaleable impact in the energy transition is exactly the space Kilara operates in."
Ben Gust, executive director of the CEFC's innovation fund, says the capital raised in the latest round will support the expansion of the platform into new areas, including smart home integration, certified metering and self-installed solar monitoring.
"Wattwatchers is continuing to develop innovative solutions to deliver real-time data on energy usage, important work which will further empower Australian households and businesses to manage their energy usage," Gust says.
"The Innovation Fund was proud to be an early investor in Wattwatchers and we are delighted to see this exciting company continue to grow and attract additional investor support."
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