Earlier this week, the Iberian Peninsula went dark. A massive power outage closed businesses, grounded planes, halted public transport and paused routine surgeries throughout Portugal and Spain. While the cause of the blackout is still unknown, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez says that about 60 per cent of his country’s total electricity supply was wiped out within seconds.
As the world continues to shift toward lower-carbon energy sources, these outages are inevitable, says Denis Steyn, the CEO of Proventus Global, a Toronto-based company developing technology to facilitate the transition to more sustainable power. As experts speculate about what factors might have led to the Iberian incident, Steyn thinks it’s likely that the substantial renewable energy penetration in the region played a role. While Ontario relies on renewables to provide just five per cent of its electricity, renewable energy accounts for 80 per cent of the supply in Portugal and Spain. “That’s a stability challenge for the grid operators,” Steyn explains.
Unlike fossil fuels, which can maintain a steady supply of energy, more sustainable options such as solar or wind are subject to ebbs and flows when generating power. These challenges point to why Proventus and other companies in this sector are working to find solutions that can support the adoption of renewables. Long-duration batteries and other energy storage options that provide ready-to-deploy backup power could bolster grid resiliency and help mitigate the effects of blackouts.
“Grids in North America have been underinvested for the last 50 years,” says Steyn, adding that if we want to avoid mass outages down the road, we need to proactively shore up existing infrastructure now.
Planetary Technologies gets XPRIZE props
XPRIZE Carbon Removal — a global competition to find novel technologies that address climate change — just announced the winners of its four-year contest. Among the honourees were Nova Scotia-based Planetary Technologies, which earned an XFactor award — worth $1 million (U.S.) — for its systems that alter ocean alkalinity to bolster carbon-capture capacity. The company adds naturally occurring basic minerals to water at facilities such as wastewater treatment sites with the aim of reducing acidity, protecting ecosystems and enhancing the ocean’s ability to absorb carbon dioxide. “This win signals that our work is part of the path forward, and it also highlights the pivotal role that Canadian companies play in a thriving future,” says Planetary’s CEO Mike Kelland. “We’ll be investing in growing our monitoring systems, expanding community engagement and deepening our collaborations to ensure that as we scale, we do so responsibly.” Other XPRIZE champs were Mati Carbon, which took home the $50-million grand prize, and runners-up NetZero, Vaulted Deep and UNDO Carbon, which received $15 million, $8 million and $5 million, respectively.
Pilot partnership
Calgary’s Ayrton Energy, which is developing a hydrogen storage system that can work in low temperatures and low pressures, has announced plans to team up with Albertan natural gas distributor ATCO on a pilot project. Ayrton’s electric liquid organic hydrogen carrier (e-LOHC) tech will help facilitate the distribution of the gas at room temperature without requiring novel equipment.
Eon Media, which has developed various tech tools geared toward the media, such as livestreaming and extracting metadata, has won Product of the Year at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) show.
Amazon pledges allegiance to Cyclic Materials
Toronto company Cyclic Materials has secured an undisclosed amount of funding from Amazon’s Climate Pledge Fund as a part of its Series B fundraising round. The company will be using this funding to expand its rare-earth recycling infrastructure to Europe and the U.S.
A big lift for Axtion Independence Mobility
The United States Veterans Health Administration (VHA) has teamed up with Nova Scotia-based Axtion Independent Mobility to use the company’s RAYMEX Lift for patrons of the Northeast Ohio health-care system. The device, a portable lift and support system with a seat that can lower to the ground as well as rise up to about 60 centimetres — useful in the case of a fall — is intended to provide more independence and agency for seniors, individuals with disabilities and others navigating mobility challenges.
AWL’s alum accolades
Montreal-based AWL-Electricity, which makes wireless charging options for personal mobility devices, was recognized at the École de technologie supérieur’s recent gala. The venture, which emerged from the school’s Centech innovation hub, received the Centech Most Promising Company Award.
By the numbers
5: The number of women-led startups that have been selected to receive funding from the B.C. Centre for Innovation and Clean Energy. The recipients are Agora Energy Technologies, Seacork Studio, Ayrton Energy, EnviCore and Gaia Refinery.
$25 million (U.S.): How much Zucara raised in its successful Series B funding round. The company is developing a novel therapeutic that will help people with diabetes manage hypoglycemia.
$28 trillion (U.S.): The cost of the total climate damage caused by the world’s worst polluters.
67 per cent: The proportion of users who report being polite to ChatGPT. According to Open AI CEO Sam Altman, exchanging pleasantries such as “please” and “thank you” to the chatbot costs the company “tens of millions of dollars.”
Rebecca Gao writes about technology for MaRS. Torstar, the parent company of the Toronto Star, has partnered with MaRS to highlight innovation in Canadian companies
