EnergyLab has revealed the 10 startups selected for its 2026 Climate Solutions Accelerator, funded by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).
The six-month program will help promising climate tech startups turn innovative ideas into real-world energy solutions.
For the first time ever, this year’s cohort are all ‘hardware’ startups, working in electric vehicle (EV) charging, smarter energy management, industrial decarbonisation, critical minerals processing, and sustainable materials.
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EnergyLab CEO Megan Fisher said the program was designed to support companies at the stage where technical risk is highest and commercial capital is hardest to secure.
“Australia’s net-zero transition won’t happen through software alone; it requires physical assets, hardware and deep engineering. This all-hardware cohort represents the exact type of physical innovation needed to decarbonise our energy grid, heavy industry and material supply chains,” Fisher said.
“ARENA’s support is crucial in helping us bridge the gap between working prototypes and commercial deployment. With ARENA’s backing, we can derisk these early-stage ventures so they can attract investment, scale and deliver long-term value for Australia.”
2026 Climate Solutions Accelerator startups include:
Electrification, EV charging and grid technology
CATCH Power — home energy management hardware and software that coordinates household solar, batteries, EV charging and hot water in real time.
MetroElectro — installs, owns and operates rooftop solar and battery systems on commercial and industrial buildings under subscription agreements, removing upfront capital costs for landlords and tenants.
DC3 Tech — designs, integrates and commissions DC microgrid systems for EV fleet depots and data centres, reducing conversion losses and the grid upgrades usually required for large-scale charging.
EVX Australia — Australian fully vertically integrated public EV charging infrastructure provider, focusing on integration with existing street furniture. EVX Australia is already a successful ARENA grant recipient.
Magnefy — using non-invasive magnetic sensing and AI to detect developing faults in transformers and inverters months before failure, helping utilities, renewable energy companies and data centres improve reliability, reduce downtime and extend asset life.
Industrial decarbonisation
OzAmmonia — a UNSW spinout with a patented platform electrolyser converting industrial nitrogen oxide emissions directly into ammonia, at around half the cost of current abatement technology. OzAmmonia is already a successful ARENA grant recipient.
Critical minerals and low-emissions metals
Loop Hydrometallurgy — developing patented Halion Loop technology which offers a step-change in critical minerals processing: cheaper, cleaner, more versatile, and with considerable reductions in mine-to-metal carbon footprint.
Aspiring Materials — converting olivine into critical battery materials, low-carbon cement additives, magnesium hydroxide and hydrogen, creating multiple revenue streams with zero waste.
Related article: EnergyLab gets grant to support renewable energy startups
Emissions reduction and demand response
Alt. Leather — displaces petrochemical-derived synthetic leather and energy-intensive tanned leather with a bio-based material and a process that is 68% less carbon intensive than conventional leather.
AGRA Farming Technologies — builds and licenses commercial indoor plant factories that provide flexible load and demand response services to the grid while growing produce at price parity with field-grown crops.
