Energy Excelerator opens headquarters, fosters growth of power innovators

Hawaiian Electric Industries CEO Connie Lau and U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz met with local entrepreneurs Friday to talk about how startups will help the state lead the nation in energy innovation.

Lau and Schatz attended the opening of the headquarters of Energy Excelerator, an organization focused on launching energy startups.

Lau said Energy Excelerator’s startups represent the goals outlined in the energy transition plan that Hawaiian Electric Co. filed with the Public Utilities Commission on Tuesday.

"The energy picture in Hawaii needs to be a collaborative community effort," said Lau.

"If you think about the announcements our companies made earlier in the week that is exactly the vision that it reflects. That it isn’t only about one company being able to supply the power for Hawaii or to try to help us off of oil, it has to be a community-wide effort."

HEI invested $250,000 in the Energy Excelerator and works directly with some of the startups to help test new technologies.

Schatz said the energy startups would help Hawaii continue to lead the nation in energy transition.

"We’re one of the very few places where there is a consensus for a need to move forward," said Schatz.

The Energy Excelerator helps the startups market their business and network with companies in the energy industry, such as HEI. The organization, which started in January 2013 with funding from the Department of Energy, received a $30 million investment from the Office of Naval Research in August 2013.

According to Jill Sims at Energy Excelerator, the organization is currently working with 17 companies.

"We really work hand in hand with these early-stage companies to help them get in the position where they can move forward with their technology," said Sims.

According to Dawn Lippert, Energy Excelerator director, the organization is focusing on grid integration of renewable energy, transportation, water, agriculture and cyber security to move Hawaii’s energy system forward.

"We are looking for people that we can help and that can help us, so it really has to be a mutual relationship," said Lippert. "It’s not sort of like a typical grant. This is a very collaborative process and we work very closely with the people."

Some of the local companies Energy Excelerator is working with include Pono Home and Ibis Networks.

Pono Home is a startup focused on cutting utility costs for residents. Scott Cooney, founder and CEO of Pono Home, said the startup has worked with over 100 homes on Oahu.

"We go into the home and do a service and hopefully cut water by 30 percent overnight and electricity by 25 percent kind of overnight," said Cooney.

Ibis Networks, a startup focused on monitoring and controlling energy use of large corporations through sockets, received a $750,000 grant from Energy Excelerator.

Michael Pfeffer, CEO of Ibis Networks, said the company is working with HEI to help Hawaii public schools improve energy efficiency. Pfeffer said Ibis Networks is also working with hotels in Waikiki to reach energy efficiency and is expecting the second version of his system to be available for corporations this fall.