$27 Million Investment In Energy Management Startup Stem
Constellation Technology Ventures and Total Energy Ventures are investing in energy storage startup Stem, Inc., which is based in Millbrae, California. The amount of Stem’s series B round is $27 million dollars. The investment will be used for further expansion of the company’s predictive analytics energy optimization platform and acceleration of growth in Hawaii, California, and New York, which are key markets.
“Energy storage is becoming an increasingly important energy and demand management solution for customers and utilities. We view Stem among the leaders in this market and look forward to taking an active role in facilitating Stem’s nationwide expansion,” explained Michael Smith, head of Constellation Technology Ventures.
Stem is focused on energy management and storage for businesses and utilities. Its technology helps businesses reduce their peak loads by predicting energy usage and then using stored energy in bursts at key moments so their customers can avoid paying for the most expensive electricity. Cloud-based predictive analytics and optimization software gathers data and analyzes it so customers have plenty of information to work with to manage their energy consumption.
For example, at the Intercontinental Hotel in San Francisco, a Stem system with 54 kW of energy storage provides the supplementary power at precise moments during peak usage.
One thing that is helping to spur growth in California’s energy storage market is the mandate requiring three big utilities in the state to have 1,325 MW of energy storage by 2020. Utility districts and municipal utilities will have to also get energy storage equal to 1% of their projected 2020 peak electricity demand. (This is not meant to imply that Stem is only about energy storage, because it also is about intelligent management of energy with software.)
Total Energy Ventures is the venture capital arm of Total. Total is a leading global oil and gas company that has also developed solar power and biomass projects. About 100,000 people work for the company in 130 countries. Total has also invested heavily in SunPower.
Constellation Technology Ventures is the venture capital arm of Exelon Corporation, a Chicago-based energy company that has about 35,000 MW of owned energy capacity. The company’s utilities provide electricity and natural gas to 7.8 million customers in American states.
Image Credit: Stem, Inc.
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