Start-up Incubator Energia to Receive $500K Boost From NBIF

Thanks to NBIF and Energia Ventures, more companies will be able to access the support they need – monetary and otherwise – over the next two years.

Based in Fredericton, Energia Ventures is an accelerator offshoot from the University of New Brunswick that focuses on entrepreneurs in the energy, smart grid, cleantech, and cybersecurity sectors. They provide funding, mentoring, and programming to help innovative start-up businesses reach their full potential.

Earlier this month, we announced our plans to invest $250,000 each year in companies participating in Energia’s accelerator program over the next two years, for a total investment of $500,000. Participating companies will receive an investment of up to $50,000 from NBIF, along with non-dilutive funding of $20,000 that is already in place from Energia, bringing the total potential investment amount to $70,000 per company.

The way we see it, an investment in Energia’s accelerator program will lead to a ripple effect of positivity in New Brunswick. Our investment will help innovators access funding – a necessity for every start-up business. Even better, investing through Energia means companies will be equipped with more than just cash. They’ll have the knowledge, mentorship, training, and resources they need to help them grow.

“Energia plays a key role in the New Brunswick innovation ecosystem by helping these companies establish relationships and by curating investible companies,” says Ray Fitzpatrick, NBIF Director of Investments. “We want to see Energia achieve international recognition as an accelerator with a highly competitive environment from start-ups to participate in the program.”

NBIF specializes in venture capital and research investments, and we’re incredibly proud of the impact we’ve had on our province’s start-up landscape. Over the years, we’ve invested over $100 million in New Brunswick companies and brought in $457 million more from other sources. Our investments have helped launch over 100 companies and funded nearly 500 applied research projects.

Of course, we always do our due diligence to make sure we’re making a sound investment – a point we have in common with Energia.

“We strive to attract and work with the best companies in our sectors of focus,” says Joe Allen, Energia’s managing director. “This investment will go a long way in attracting these companies in the competitive space of business acceleration.”

Energia is a member of GAN, an organization that runs more than 100 accelerators in 120 cities across the globe. Although Energia’s program is free for participating companies, the accelerator provides seed funding in exchange for equity.

“Energia has a great reputation for working with companies to help them realize their full potential and getting them to market,” says Ray. “NBIF knows that the best accelerators in the world come with equity investments, and by assisting Energia in making this level of commitment, we believe they will be on par with the best-in-class international accelerators in both programming and funding.”