CSIRO and TRaCE partner to empower clean energy startups in Australia

The CSIRO is collaborating with Trailblazer for Recycling and Clean Energy (TRaCE) for the latest round of its ‘Innovate to Grow’ program. This free initiative is aimed at SMEs involved in the clean energy space.

This follows a $20 million investment by the CSIRO into its SME Connect portfolio last month.

Launched in 2020, the program has already worked with 600 SMEs to help boost the Australian small business sector through its 10-week online program. In the past, it has focused on other sectors such as cybersecurity.

According to the CSIRO, Innovate to Grow provides a supportive environment with expert facilitators, experienced researchers and self-paced deliverables to help SMEs tackle technical and business challenges.

Participants also gain access to researcher connections, networking opportunities, guest speakers and feedback – enabling them to address business challenges, explore collaborations, and develop actionable R&D and funding plans.

Professor Emmanuel Mastio, executive director of TRaCE, emphasised the crucial role of SMEs, scaleups, and startups in building supply chains for Australia’s clean energy transition.

“We need to bring our universities into the fold and see a shift in our approach where SMEs and industry are provided greater support to commercialise their innovations and de-risk investment at speed,” Mastio said.

“At TRaCE, we are extremely focused on emissions reductions and our path to Net Zero. We jumped at the opportunity to extend our ecosystem of support through CSIRO’s Innovate to Grow program’s Clean Energy series.”

The CSIRO’s director of energy, Dr Dietmar Toubier, highlighted Australia’s potential to become a global leader in clean energy.

“We have all the ingredients here in Australia for the critical energy minerals that are required to power the clean energy transition,” Toubier noted, referencing an International Energy Agency (IEA) analysis indicating that Australia could achieve the lowest cost clean energy among OECD countries.

Fionna Millikan, head of business development at Green Gravity, shared her positive experience as part of the 2023 Innovate to Grow cohort.

“The program was very practical and hands-on. [Our facilitator] Tony was an excellent steward and mentor, provided valuable advice, and connected me with potential research partners,” Millikan said.

The Innovate to Grow: Clean Energy program is open to SMEs working in various sub-sectors, including energy storage, electrification, energy modeling and integrated systems, carbon management, renewable energy, renewable heat, sustainable fuels, and more.

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