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Sydney-based energy startup Good Heat, backed by more than $2m in funding from venture capitalists such as Investible, is betting on batteries to replace gas to deliver heat for Australian industries through a new model offering a low-cost transition to renewables.
Founded earlier this year by Bruis van Vlijmen, Bauke van Gent and Tom Geiser, Good Heat deploys large-scale thermal energy storage (TES) systems powered by renewable electricity.
Good Heat sees its platform unlocking the bankability and profitability of TES to accelerate its deployment across industry.
Through its business model, Good Heat takes on the capital investment and risk to make adoption of renewables for industrial users as straightforward as possible.
With a pipeline of projects in development and a model designed to scale rapidly, Good Heat says it plans to become a cornerstone of Australia’s industrial decarbonisation effort.
“Our partners don’t need to buy equipment or speculate on the energy markets,” says CEO Bauke van Gent.
“We sell heat, not hardware. Customers simply receive a monthly bill for the heat they consume and save millions compared to gas.”
Good Heat, which combines thermal battery projects with its in-house energy management system, secures deals with clients through a heat purchase agreement (HPA) that the company says locks in savings for between 10 and 20 years for industrial clients.
Good Heat estimates that with its first major contract involving Project Arcadia in Victoria, the factory partner will cut more than $1.5 million a year from its energy bill while drastically reducing emissions from burning gas. The company describes Project Arcadia as the largest heat battery development in Australia.
Good Heat is a developer, owner and operator of thermal energy storage projects, which typically cost upwards of $50 million to build.
The “heat batteries” charge when electricity is cheapest, usually during the middle of the day when solar power is abundant, and dispatch steam on demand.
The company manages the heat battery through its intelligent energy management system which Good Heat says optimises for lowest cost of steam and maintains reliable operation.
Good Heat also points out that its system benefits the wider electricity network through demand-side flexibility that helps to stabilise the grid.
In addition to the backing of early-stage venture capital firm Investible, Good Heat has also secured support from Understorey Ventures, a specialist investor in sustainability innovators, and 2100VC, the European fund linked to the Benetton industrial group.
Good Heat says its investors bring relevant experience to the business through previous investments in Newcastle-based MGA Thermal and various energy-as-a-service ventures and battery technology platforms.
“Good Heat has the potential to show that thermal energy storage can be both bankable and profitable, and to accelerate its large-scale deployment across industry sectors that are difficult to decarbonise,” says Jordan Soriot, director at Understorey Ventures.
“For manufacturers, being able to access zero-carbon heat without upfront investment is a genuine step change for industrial electrification.”
Ben Lindsay, investment principal at Investible, says that the Good Heat team has demonstrated “impressive commercial traction” for a new company as it undertakes its first project in Victoria.
“With significant market pull, and a stellar team, we are convinced that Good Heat has what it takes to roll out this industrial heat platform across Australia and into overseas markets,” says Lindsay.
Good Heat’s co-founders have extensive experience in the field with CEO Bauke van Gent previously a commercial leader at Neoen Australia where he led the origination of more than 2GW of renewable energy and storage projects in Australia.
Tom Geiser, the company’s chief energy markets, is experienced in Australian energy contracting through his time at Infigen and Neoen, where he helped set up the energy trading team.
The company’s CTO Bruis van Vlijmen has been at the forefront of commercialising new battery technologies as venture partner at energy-tech fund Transition VC, while also well versed in AI-driven battery optimisation through his research at Stanford University.
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