BP Ventures has invested £1.5m in London-based energy monitoring company Voltaware.

This forms part of Volatware’s £2.5m Series A round, which also drew support from First Imagine! Ventures and Contrarian Ventures.

The deal was made as part of BP’s Alternative Energy’s strategy to explore digital innovations and the impact of technology on energy consumption and management. Voltaware fits into this criteria, as its sensors enable businesses and residential users to track their energy demand in detail, including individual appliances. 

David Gilmour, vice president of BP Ventures, commented on the investment: “Governments, business and individuals must all play their part in advancing the energy transition. Realtime energy monitoring is growing in importance and the time is right for businesses to start adopting the technology.

“Voltaware’s product gives customers access to more information and enables better choices. BP Ventures believes Voltaware’s offer to businesses could lead to far more efficient operations,” he added.

Voltaware is an electricity data intelligence company. It has developed an internet-enabled electricity sensor and AI-based data intelligence platform. The purpose is to track and optimise energy consumption, as well as to predicatively monitor the performance of individual machinery, in order to catch abnormal energy usage levels before it’s too late. The data can be checked and analysed in real-time using an app.

Sergey Ogorodnov, founder and CEO of Voltaware, shared more about the company: “Modern utilities and businesses are looking at harnessing the power of electricity data as a key driver for their digital transformation strategy. By utilising the power of Voltaware’s electricity data intelligence, businesses can achieve a sustainable competitive edge for their customers.

“The money will help us focus on our AI and data science capabilities and speed up our growth,” he added. 

BP Ventures was set up in 2004 to invest in private, high-growth tech companies working in the energy sector. The firm has offices across the world, and has so far invested over $400m in technology companies, including Fotech Solutions and BiSN. The team is also investing in five new focus areas: advanced mobility, bio & low carbon products, carbon management, digital transformation and power & storage.

BP have previously bought Chargemaster, an electric car charging point company.

Dev Sanyal, chief executive of BP Alternative Energy, explained the decision: “Nearly two thirds of the projected growth in global energy demand over coming decades is expected to come in the form of electricity, and BP is looking at innovative ways to meet customers’ power and storage needs.

“Enabled by digital technologies such as those provided by Voltaware, we can be more efficient in the generation of electricity and how that power can be monitored, moved, sold, traded and stored,” he concluded.