Newcastle tech startup Swam Energy has launched its new home energy management app to customers.
Entrepreneurs Dan Martin and Anthony Piggott sold Consett-based Elmtronics, a leading fleet electric vehicle (EV) charging point firm, to Norwegian EV charging giant Mer at the start of last year.
In the months following the deal the pair originally focussed on buying and renovating holiday let properties in the UK and abroad, making them as sustainable as possible with features including solar panels, heat pumps, better energy storage and EV charging equipment. Their work unveiled a gap in the market for an app to measure the impact of green solutions, showing savings and how much energy they are producing or using, all in one place.
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As a result, they formed Swam Energy, which aims to change the way people buy, generate and use energy in their homes. It is now completing its first renewable energy installations for homeowners in the region, before a UK-wide rollout in 2024.
Mr Martin, CEO and co-founder, said: “Right now, people are reliant on the big energy companies to power their homes, and lots of us are feeling the impact of increasing energy costs. We founded Swarm to change this and kick off a much-needed energy revolution.
“We believe that, if we’re to transition to renewable energy and address rising costs and uncertainty, then the way people buy and sell energy needs to change. We give homeowners the power to control the way they generate renewable energy, use it where and when they need it to further reduce their reliance on the grid, and automatically sell any excess back when it’s worth the most.”
Swarm designs and installs a ‘solar power plant’ for each home, consisting of solar panels, an inverter and battery storage. In development is a new energy management system which people will be able to use to manage all their home’s energy in one place, regardless of the brands of smart devices they have.
The Swarm Q-Bee will manage how energy flows around the home, diverting energy to where and when it’s needed, storing excess to avoid peak grid pricing and eventually enabling people to sell the power they generate between one another or as a collective back to the grid. The team also provides support for customers throughout the lifetime of their energy system, not just during the installation process.
Mr Martin said: “We went into this business because we all have to play a part in addressing climate change and the cycle of being trapped with ever-raising energy bills. By giving people control over the energy in their own homes, they can transition to renewable energy, they can live in a more sustainable way, and they can save money as well.”
The business already employs a team of 10 at its base in Hoults Yard and has plans for growth over the next few months.
Co-founder and CTO Mr Piggott added: “We want Swarm to become a household name that’s synonymous with energy management in the home, like Nest is for heating, grown from our base in Newcastle. This business has huge potential and, in a time of uncertainty for the energy market, we have big ambitions to change the way people across the UK use energy in their homes and disrupt the traditional balance of power we’ve seen in the industry.”
