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Open Call
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Newlab has partnered with Greater New Orleans, Inc., along with strategic regional and industry stakeholders including Shell, Battelle, Carbonvert, and Louisiana State University, to launch two DOE-funded programs focused on commercializing carbon management and clean hydrogen technologies. By creating a strong coalition of government, industry, and startups players, these programs will also lay the groundwork for Newlab to expand to Louisiana and scale programming across the Gulf South Region.
The Newlab applied innovation programs in Louisiana are being launched through two U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) funding opportunities that Newlab was awarded called the Energy Program for Innovation Clusters (EPIC). These programs are designed to help carbon management and clean hydrogen startups accelerate and de-risk their commercialization efforts, namely, by developing first-of-a-kind pilot project concepts with regional partners.
"We’re not going to solve climate change with one breakthrough technology. It’s going to take hundreds of founders with amazing ideas to create the sea change we need," said CEO of Newlab, Cam Lawrence. "Greater New Orleans Inc. shares that vision, and I can't think of a better place than the state of Louisiana for our work supporting startups developing industrial decarbonization and carbon management technologies.”
Through this work, startups will have facilitated access to technical and commercial insights, regional government and industry partners, and relevant subject matter experts to enable more efficient in-field pilot development and scale-up in Louisiana.
“By aligning and activating infrastructure, industry programs, and venture capital investment, Newlab Louisiana stands to bolster the state’s competitiveness in creating and attracting startups across strategic energy growth sectors,” said Michael Hecht, President & CEO of Greater New Orleans, Inc. (GNO, Inc.) “We and our public-private partners across the H2theFuture initiative are firm believers that Louisiana is best-positioned to extend its energy leadership while supporting the commercialization of climate technologies such as those participating in the EPIC program.”
Chosen in partnership with the program’s industry partners, the startups represent a range of technologies across the carbon management and clean hydrogen value chains. The nine (9) startups selected for the program are:
We believe Louisiana has a generational opportunity to harness its energy legacy and existing industrial base, infrastructure, and workforce to attract entrepreneurs developing critical technology that will futureproof the region’s economy and scale globally-demanded solutions.
Newlab creates purpose-built innovation hubs rooted in critical climate themes. Our global network of hubs align cross-sector partners, infrastructure, and capital to attract deep-tech startups and accelerate commercialization outcomes that drive technology-led economic growth. By utilizing Louisiana’s unique advantages to aid the development of carbon and hydrogen technologies, the EPIC Prize innovation programs allow Newlab to lay the groundwork for full-scale presence in the region.
To date, Louisiana has been awarded $10.2B in federal funding for energy transition initiatives in renewable energy, carbon capture, synthetic fuels, and clean hydrogen. Louisiana also leads the Gulf Coast in energy transition project announcements, with over $47 billion of commercial project investments announced as of 2023. This past year, the National Science Foundation awarded the Future Use of Energy in Louisiana (FUEL) collaborative the largest and most competitive grant ever awarded in the agency’s history. With the launch of these strategic programs, we seek to build on the regional momentum to advance the energy transition and create a unique ecosystem of next generation technologies in Louisiana that will decarbonize industry to meet net-zero carbon targets.
WATCH: We kicked off this program in New Orleans on August 13th - meet the startups and hear from leaders in the Louisiana ecosystem >
On August 13th, industry and government leaders gathered at The New Orleans BioInnovation Center to meet the new cohort of startups and officially kick off the program.
The event began with a discussion on how climate tech innovation can drive Louisiana’s energy transition. Key speakers included representatives from GNO Inc., Future Use of Energy in Louisiana (FUEL), Louisiana State University, the U.S. Economic Development Administration, the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the Grow Louisiana Coalition.
Another panel focused on building community benefit plans in Louisiana, with insights from Climeworks, the City of New Orleans, the Greater New Orleans Foundation, and Louisiana State University, emphasizing inclusive strategies for equitable growth.
Later, experts from Worley, WSP, and T. Baker Smith provided insights on developing carbon capture, carbon dioxide removal (CDR), and clean hydrogen projects. Heirloom Carbon shared their journey in scaling Direct Air Capture (DAC) technology in Louisiana during a fireside chat, followed by a discussion on the state’s innovation ecosystem with LED, The Idea Village, Louisiana State University, and GNO Inc.
The event concluded with startup pitches, an innovation showcase, and networking opportunities, bringing together key stakeholders in Louisiana's innovation ecosystem.
Alongside the program partners, Newlab is working closely with each technology company to design projects that will de-risk their next technical and commercial milestones, through deployment opportunities in Louisiana.
If you are part of the Louisiana or broader Gulf South ecosystem and are interested in engaging with the program startups by informing and/or co-developing their first-of-a-kind pilot projects, please contact us here >
