Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) is pleased to announce its selection of the 2018 New Energy Pioneers - innovators that are revolutionizing the energy, transport, and technology sectors. The winners (listed below) are responding to changes and disruption in the energy system, and are pursuing new opportunities in areas as diverse as storage, EV charging, digitalization, heat recovery, and blockchain. The 2018 New Energy Pioneers have been unveiled today at BNEF's Future of Energy Summit, in New York City. 

By recognizing innovators, BNEF aims to highlight and accelerate the transition that is underway in today's new energy economy, towards new business models, technologies, market structures and commercial opportunities. 

An independent panel of industry experts, assisted by BNEF's analysts and technology specialists, selected the ten winners from more than 160 applicants from close to 50 countries around the world. Each candidate was assessed against three criteria: technology or business model innovation, and what novelty it brought to the market; evidence of substantive progress in the form of strong commercial partnerships, the distribution channels in place and sales growth; and the potential to scale and have a global impact. 

The 2018 New Energy Pioneers are: 

 · Advanced Microgrid Solutions (U.S.) designs, develops, and manages portfolios of distributed energy resources providing dynamic grid management and value to wholesale markets.  · Bidgely (U.S.) is a load disaggregation company that uses machine learning and data analytics to process smart meter data and provide its users with insights about their energy consumption.  · BURN (Kenya) has designed and manufactured over 370,000 clean cook stoves, improving both air quality and access to power for low-income households.  · Climeon (Sweden) has commercialized the extraction of electricity from low-temperature heat (70-120 degrees Celsius), used in the context of waste heat or geothermal power.  · Enbala (U.S.) operates a real-time energy-balancing platform creating controllable and dispatchable energy resources from flexible loads, energy storage and renewable energy sources.  · Greenlots (U.S.) is a hardware-agnostic provider of electric vehicle network management software and services. These give utilities, cities, communities and automakers the ability to control grid loads through smart charging and demand response.  · Limejump (U.K.) is a demand response energy technology company and the largest virtual power plant operator in the U.K., using proprietary software to aggregate and manage a distributed fleet of flexible assets.  · LO3 Energy (U.S.) is an early mover in peer-to-peer energy trading using blockchain technology, and is developing other applications for its blockchain platform.  · SaltX (Sweden) is an innovator in storing heat chemically, using a proprietary salt-based technology. This uses a nano coating and graphene to prevent salt crystals from growing when energy is stored, greatly improving the number of storage cycles whilst also reducing corrosion.  · WiTricity (U.S.) has developed wireless charging through magnetic resonance technology, allowing high-efficiency power transfer for the electric vehicle industry. 

Michael Wilshire, selection committee chair and head of strategy at Bloomberg New Energy Finance, said: "This year, we were delighted to receive a record number of strong candidates for the New Energy Pioneers program, drawn from 47 different countries. We have seen a sharp uptick in the number of applicants that use digital technologies and software to help make the electricity system more resilient, flexible and efficient - all critical elements of a more decentralized and renewable energy system. 

"Emerging technologies such as machine learning and blockchain are being used to improve decision making and to make operations more efficient, as well as to create new capabilities, such as peer-to-peer energy trading and the ability to manage complex sets of distributed assets. Transport is being transformed, with two of this year's Pioneers developing infrastructure, software, and services to support the rollout of electric vehicles. And we continue to see strong innovation in other areas, such as storage and energy in developing markets," he added. 

"We are very encouraged by the innovation, determination and creativity shown by these Pioneers and by the potential that they have to help transform the energy and transport systems. We are, as ever, very grateful to our external judges on the selection committee who had the challenge of choosing ten winners from a strong pool of entrants." 

Quotes from New Energy Pioneers: 

"Being recognized as a New Energy Pioneer is a great honor for AMS. This award really is a signal that the era of transactive energy management has arrived." - Susan Kennedy, CEO, Advanced Microgrid Solutions 

"Bidgely leverages Artificial Intelligence to help utilities personalize the energy experience for consumers around the world. We celebrate becoming a Bloomberg New Energy Pioneer, an honor which recognizes our ability to solve real-world utility business challenges like digital transformation and a rapidly evolving energy landscape." - Abhay Gupta, CEO, Bidgely 

"To win an award from an organization I admire so much is humbling. Recognition as a Bloomberg New Energy Pioneer means that BURN is able to share its story with the world. It gives a boost to our mission of saving forests and lives in the developing world through improved cooking solutions." - Peter Scott, CEO, BURN 

"Climeon's vision is to become the number 1 climate solver. To reach this we have to be true pioneers. Becoming a Bloomberg New Energy Pioneer confirms that we are on the right path and it really makes us very proud." - Thomas Ostrom, CEO, Climeon 

"We are very honored to be one of this year's 10 game-changing, clean energy companies. We exist for one reason: to create an energy future that's sustainable and balanced. It's gratifying to me personally and to everyone who works at Enbala to have our energy balancing technology recognized by such a prestigious and well-respected organization." - Arthur (Bud) Vos, CEO and President, Enbala 

"At Greenlots, we're dedicated to delivering cutting-edge technology to our customers, allowing them to optimize and manage their EV charging infrastructure, and provide drivers a seamless, reliable charging experience. This recognition from Bloomberg New Energy Finance is a key indicator of the significance of our work to make EVs a part of everyday life across the globe, while creating new market opportunities at the grid edge." - Brett Hauser, CEO, Greenlots 

"Being recognised by the Bloomberg New Energy Finance Award is a clear vindication of our business model to help drive a sustainable future. We see Bloomberg as a key ally in providing our customers with insight and information which is needed to ensure we all build this new energy market bottom up." - Erik Nygard, CEO, Limejump 

"Making energy is about one of the dirtiest things we do on the planet. It puts more toxins and pollution in the air than just about any other industry. We are honoured that BNEF chose to recognize the impact LO3 Energy is making today with its blockchain technology. Empowering prosumers and bringing choice to consumers, together we are making fundamental changes that will affect the energy sector's advancement in clean energy forever." - Lawrence Orsini, CEO, LO3 Energy 

"Being a BNEF New Energy Pioneer means of course a great honor and helps putting SaltX on the map, but it also means a great responsibility for making the sustainable energy revolution happen. We at SaltX promise to work tirelessly - and we will not stop - until our low-cost, scalable and natural energy storage technology is used on a global basis." - Karl Bohman, CEO, SaltX 

"WiTricity is the pioneer in developing wireless charging for electric vehicles that is as fast and efficient as plugging in. Global automakers are accelerating development of EV platforms, and WiTricity is focused on improving the ownership experience-no more cables, no mess, and no worry about remembering to charge. We also recognize that the future of mobility is electrified, autonomous and shared, and wireless charging is an essential enabler for fleets of robotaxis where there is no driver to plug in. The past year has been exceptional for WiTricity with alignment at the SAE on a global EV wireless charging standard and multiple automakers announcing and demonstrating our wireless charging technology. EV wireless charging is an enabler for broad consumer EV adoption, lowering our carbon footprint, and can act as a catalyst for Vehicle to Grid which is important for expanding renewable energy sources. Being selected as a New Energy Pioneer stands as a true testament to our role in auto electrification, and we're honored to be among 10 global companies making such a necessary impact on the future of energy." - Alex Gruzen, CEO, WiTricity 

The New Energy Pioneers program partner is Cycle Capital Management. 

For more information on the New Energy Pioneers program, visit: https://about.bnef.com/new-energy-pioneers/

 Bloomberg New Energy Finance | bnef.com