Australia is a country of natural wonders, from the Great Barrier Reef and Daintree Rainforest to Kakadu National Park and the Blue Mountains. But due to the country’s naturally dry and biodiverse climate, it is particularly vulnerable to extreme weather events that have been exacerbated by climate change. All these wonders have been affected in recent years by fires, extreme heat waves, rising temperatures and floods.
Queensland is facing its worst flooding on record since Cyclone Ilsa. This is on top of the effects of La Niña last year, which brought severe flooding and record-breaking rainfall to Eastern Australia. And before that, during the Black Summer of 2019 and 2020, the country experienced the most devastating fire that burned more than 30,000 square kilometers of land and killed 3 billion animals. Add to that, about 90% of the Great Barrier Reef the coral has been bleached by rising sea temperatures.
Australia has experienced its share of climate disasters, which have only fueled its climate tech startups into action.
The island continent is sparsely populated in most of its flat, dry, sun-drenched center – referred to as the Red Center – and has the perfect conditions for harvesting solar and wind energy. Large-scale solar and wind farms have spread across the country in recent years, causing renewable energy production to increase from 16% in 2011 to 32% in 2022. The Australian government has set a target of bringing its grid to 82 % renewable energy sources by 2030.
“Now there is this perfect confluence of environmental issues, political support and technological readiness that makes climate technology, particularly coming from Australia, well-positioned to really reach the next level of scale in the next five years,” said Jack Curtis, chief commercial officer. in the Close.
However, the lack of capital needed to take startups to a scale-up phase could hinder access to Australian innovation – an issue that is becoming familiar across the startup sector.
Neara works with utilities around the world. It recently raised another $24 million to help its customers — like Southern California Edison — protect their infrastructure by creating 3D models that reflect and simulate how utilities behave in the real world in scenarios like drought or flooding.
The climate tech hype in Australia is real if it can be sustained. Local VCs are more excited about the sector this year, with climate and cleantech dominating funding and deal numbers in Q3 2023. Startups in this sector raised $116 million in Q3, up from the $60 million invested in the sector in Q2 and $40 million in Q1, according to Cut Through Venture Data. [Note: Numbers are in AUD unless otherwise stated.]
It has been an upward trend for the past two years. In 2022, climate technology in Australia raised $553 million in capital, compared to $338 million in 2021, according to report by Climate Salad, a community of Australian climate technology participants. The goal was to raise another $1.5 billion this year, but the industry is lagging because of late and unsuccessful capital raises, according to company co-founder Mick Liubinskas.
“We have a large number of companies looking for Q1 2024 growth and more capital from international investors,” he said.
Startup founders say securing big checks is their biggest hurdle, but it’s the most important one they need to put in place if they want to scale and survive.
