Cologne Green energy transition platform epilot has raised €10 million from Expedition Growth Capital. 

Utilities and grid operators are being held back from supporting the switch to renewable energy because of outdated, legacy IT systems. 

Old-school software means utilities can’t keep up with the complexities required for different product categories to serve their customers holistically. Grid operators are also struggling to manage the increased workload due to surges in grid connections. This is hampering the renewable energy transition at a time when temperatures across Europe have reached record levels.

Founded in 2017, epilot provides an all-in-one solution, streamlining processes and reducing complexity for enterprise customers. With epilot, utilities can standardise and automate sales processes for new renewable energy products and increase efficiency when handling customer inquiries and installation companies. 

Grid operators can use the software to reduce bottlenecks in workflows and connect more customers to renewable energy systems at home.

Customers can reduce their reliance on siloed and inflexible tools such as Microsoft Excel and outdated CRM systems. This means projects that would usually last between 18-24 months can be completed in only a few weeks. 

Epilot serves over 150 customers including badenova, DEW21, enercity, and Mainzer Netze. 

Michel Nicolai, CEO and co-founder of epilot, said: 

“Our mission at epilot is to accelerate the energy transition. Whilst we didn’t need to raise this funding as we have been growing sustainably, today’s announcement is a major milestone on our journey and will enable us to execute even faster on our platform roadmap and expansion plans.

We are excited to welcome Expedition as our growth investor based on their thesis in our industry and deep experience in supporting vertically focused SaaS companies in achieving scalability.”

Will Sheldon, Partner at Expedition Growth Capital, said: 

“We are thrilled to partner with epilot’s passionate team of experts and visionaries. The energy industry is now embracing digital transformation along with the green transition and epilot’s strong and efficient growth is a testament to the value that sophisticated customer organisations are seeing.”

The new funding will enable epilot to significantly expand its about 100-strong team, including expanding the product engineering team, to develop new products and solutions for the platform and extend its AI capabilities.

Lead image: epilot founders Szilard Toth (CTO), Michel Nicolai (CEO) and Rolf Benken (CFO). Photo: uncredited.