Allgemein

Dear Ladies and Gentlemen,

We’re getting close to the finish line – our fund will officially close to new investors at the end of June.

It’s been an exciting ride: strong momentum, a growing community of LPs, and real alignment around our mission. If you’ve been thinking about joining us, now’s the time.

At Vireo Ventures, we back ambitious founders driving the energy transition – but just as importantly, we’re building a network around them. Our LPs aren’t just names on a report. They’re experts, allies, and collaborators who share insights, challenge assumptions, and open doors.

Today, we’re proud to count nearly 70 energy-focused investors – private individuals, family offices, and corporates from across Europe – all united by a belief in the potential of an all-electrified world. This partnership model doesn’t just benefit the fund, it strengthens the ecosystem and improves the odds for early-stage companies navigating complex markets.

Our partner Felix recently wrote about this shift – how LPs and GPs are redefining what real collaboration looks like in venture, and how that’s reshaping the future of European energy tech. (We’ll share the full article in our next issue.)

That’s the kind of platform we’re building. And if that resonates, we’d love to talk.

🔋 Back from Intersolar Europe

We saw that spirit of collaboration in full force last week at Intersolar in Munich – and the energy sector is absolutely buzzing.

Between reconnecting with LPs like VERBUND and EnBW New Ventures, meeting new faces, and catching up with founders across the value chain, one thing was clear: this market is moving fast.

Over the course of three intense (and fun) days, we hosted around 60 startup pitches, a few logistics hiccups here and there, but overall a fantastic turnout and great momentum.

⚡ The Grid Returns

In parallel, we hosted the second edition of The Grid – our flagship side event, co-hosted with BRYCK.COM, World Fund, and HTGF | High-Tech Gründerfonds, and supported by rEnergy Partners, Enpulse , VERBUND, Shell Ventures, and VentureCapital Magazin.

More than 180+ people showed-up, and the energy in the room was electric. Huge thanks to everyone who made it happen.

🗞 In the Press

We were included in Sifted’s Q1 2025 ranking of the most active and influential VC and CVC investors in European tech. Always good to see energy tech getting the spotlight it deserves.

🗣️ On Stage & On Mic

🎤 Felix joined an ENERPARC AG at Intersolar to talk about what early-stage energy-tech startups really need to succeed.

🎙️ He also joined Somil from CleanTechies to talk about leadership lessons, the kind that come from the tougher parts of the journey. 🎧 Listen to the episode

🎤 Meanwhile, Matthias joined a panel at the Better Future Conference (Axel Springer) to discuss energy transition, industrial competitiveness, and the policy frameworks needed to get there.

🗓 Where to Find Us Next

• 15–16 May – HackSummit, Lausanne
• 19–20 May – HTGF Family Day, Berlin
• 22 May – VC Central, Poland
• 3–4 June – EcoSummit, Berlin

💼 Who’s Hiring?

A few of our portfolio companies are growing fast and looking for great people:

• Flexecharge → Job board
• Reshape Energy → LinkedIn Jobs

Know someone looking for their next challenge in energy-tech? Pass it along.

That’s it from us for now. If you’re building, investing, or simply exploring what’s happening in early-stage energy tech – we’d love to hear from you.

Interested in the fund or what it’s like to be part of the Vireo LP community? We’re always happy to have a conversation.

All the best, Felix, Lou, Matthias, Mischa, Sandro, Sven & Thomas

Reshape Energy GmbH, a Munich-based building energy services business, has successfully raised €5 million in expansion capital. The funding was provided by the founding team, industry insiders, PostScriptum Ventures and Vireo Ventures, a European early-stage venture capital fund focused on electrification and digitalization. This funding round will enable Reshape Energy to complete additional acquisitions across the building energy services value chain in Germany, enhance its technology platform capabilities to drive operational efficiency and maintain high quality standards, and scale its commercial offering to capture market demand.
Reshape Energy is addressing a multi-billion-euro opportunity fueled by rising energy costs and increasing regulatory pressure on property owners across Europe. Targeting owners of property portfolios, the company simplifies the transformation of building energy performance with an all-in-one solution. By integrating assessment, planning, financing, implementation, and ongoing management and optimization, its platform enables property owners and their tenants to reduce costs, enhance property values, and achieve sustainability targets. The founding team, consisting of Alan Clifford, Andrew Goodwin, Andrew Mack, Gerard Reid, Benjamin Stanzl and Markus Wiendieck, brings extensive experience in the energy sector, having previously launched and scaled successful ventures such as the Germany business of Octopus Energy – now the UK’s largest energy retailer – and Verivox, one of Germany’s largest energy price comparison platforms. “Today’s building energy services market is fragmented and inefficient. Property owners are forced to deal with a patchwork of providers, manual processes, and limited access to financing – making energy optimization complex and costly. Our strategy is centered on acquiring and integrating businesses across the building energy services value chain to offer a one-stop-shop solution to our customers,” said Andrew Mack, CEO of Reshape Energy. “By equipping these businesses with state of the art digitalization tools, streamlined processes, access to capital, and strategic direction, we are creating a new category of energy services company that can deliver unparalleled value to property owners.” Buildings consume 35% of Germany’s energy and generate 30-40% of its CO₂ emissions, making them the EU’s largest energy consumer. Ineffi ciencies caused by outdated systems and rising energy prices are becoming an increasing challenge for German and European companies and property owners. Reshape Energy is initially focused on the German market, where it completed
the acquisitions of an energy consulting business and a commercial solar planning, installation and maintenance company. The company plans to expand its footprint across Europe in the coming years. “Reshape Energy has adopted an innovative approach to providing building energy services, and we are excited to support the company’s continued growth,” said Mischa Wetzel, Partner at Vireo Ventures. “Their deep industry expertise and commitment to sustainability align perfectly with our investment strategy. We look forward to seeing the company achieve its ambitious goals and make a significant contribution to the energy transition.”

„For further info see this article on Techcrunch“:
https://techcrunch.com/2025/03/11/reshape-energy-is-using-an-acquisition-playbook-to-drive-energy-upgrades-for-commercial-real-estate/

Handwerker aus der Region, konservativer Auftritt: Wie drei Ex-Enpal-Mitarbeiter mit einem Energie-Start-up Eigenheimbesitzer bei der Modernisierung helfen wollen.

Ein Land, in dem jedes Einfamilienhaus nachhaltig modernisiert ist, ohne Stress für die Eigentümer: Mit dieser Vision gehen die drei Gründer Sebastian Schmidt, Niclas Kern und Adam Khenissi an den Start. Ihr Start-up „Deutsche Sanierungsberatung“, gegründet im vergangenen Jahr, soll Eigenheimbesitzern helfen, ihre Immobilie zu sanieren, von der Dämmung bis zum Solardach. „Wir sind dein zentraler Partner, wenn es darum geht, Strom- und Wärmekosten im Eigenheim zu senken“, sagt CEO Schmidt.

Für diese Mission hat das junge Unternehmen jetzt eine Finanzierung erhalten: 3,6 Millionen Euro haben die Gründer aus Berlin eingesammelt. Die führenden Investoren sind der Berliner Energietechnologie-Investor Vireo Ventures und, ebenfalls aus Berlin, IBB Ventures, bekannt etwa für Investments in den Heizungsbauer Thermondo und die Sprachlernplattform Babbel. Die Finanzierung soll dem Start-up helfen, seine digitale Planungstechnik auszubauen und schnell zu wachsen.

Das Geschäft haben die Gründer beim Energie-Einhorn Enpal kennengelernt. Bei dem Berliner Dienstleister, der mit dem Bau von Solaranlagen auf Hausdächern groß geworden ist, haben Schmidt, Kern und Khenissi die Sparte „Dragon“ aufgebaut.

Mit der möchte sich Enpal das Geschäft mit der Installation von Wärmepumpen erschließen.

Mit seinem eigenen Start-up macht das Trio nun seinem Ex-Arbeitgeber Konkurrenz. Doch während Enpal selbst als Installateur etwa von Solaranlagen auftritt, soll das Start-up eher die Rolle eines Energieberaters übernehmen. „Wir sehen uns als neutralen Partner von Hausbesitzern, die sie gezielt darüber aufklärt, welche Sanierungsmaßnahmen am besten geeignet sind“, sagt Mitgründer Kern.

„Deutsche Sanierungsberatung“: Schon der eher konservative Name des Start-ups soll Vertrauen schaffen – schließlich geht es bei Haussanierungen um größere Investitionen. Wer sich an das Start-up wendet, erhält erst einmal Besuch von einem Architekten oder Bauingenieur, der das Gebäude genau unter die Lupe nimmt.

Welche Sanierung rechnet sich?
Ist die Hauselektrik überhaupt geeignet, um eine Solaranlage zu installieren, oder müssen teuer neue Kabel verlegt werden? Sind die Sparren im Dach stark genug für eine neue Dämmung oder müssen sie ausgetauscht werden? Passt die Form der Dachziegel, um Solarmodule zu installieren?

Die Informationen fließen in der Zentrale des Start-ups in ein digitales Ebenbild des Hauses. Dort berechnen die Experten dann, welche Sanierung sich rechnet – von der Dämmung über den Fenstertausch bis zur wieder stark gefragten Wärmepumpe und Solaranlage. „Wir können unseren Kunden dann passgenaue Angebote von lokalen Handwerksbetrieben unterbreiten“, sagt Gründer Schmidt.

Der digitale Service soll Eigenheimbesitzern schnell ein Sanierungskonzept bieten und Handwerkern den Planungsaufwand sparen. Die Bauarbeiten sollen dann aber weiterhin lokale Handwerker übernehmen – die räumliche Nähe erlaube eine viel persönlichere Dienstleistung, sind die Gründer überzeugt. Künftig wollen die Gründer auch digitale Vernetzung etwa von Solaranlagen und E-Autos sowie smarte Stromtarife bei ihren Kunden vermarkten.

Rund 50 Mitarbeiter hat die „Deutsche Sanierungsberatung“ inzwischen. Nach der erfolgreichen Finanzierungsrunde wollen die Berliner Gründer dieses Jahr deutlich wachsen. Im vergangenen Jahr machte das Start-up knapp zwei Millionen Euro Umsatz. Unter anderem 42watt aus München und Enter aus Berlin positionieren sich mit einem ähnlichen Konzept am Markt. Der aber sei groß genug, sagt Gründer Schmidt. Bisher verursacht der Gebäudebereich 30 Prozent der CO2-Emissionen in Deutschland. Damit die auf Null sinken, müssen noch viele Milliarden Euro investiert werden.

Artikel in der Wirtschaftwoche von Andreas Menn

The €2 million equity investment into the company is led by Climentum Capital with participation from Vireo Ventures and others.

Scale Energy is quickly becoming the market leader in industrial battery storage development and has secured a battery project CapEx committment for 100 MW from an energy focused infrastructure investor.

Berlin, Germany: 20 February 2025 – Scale Energy, Germany’s leading developer of industrial battery storage systems, has successfully closed an oversubscribed Seed funding round.

The equity funding is led by Climentum Capital, a European early-stage climate tech investor, with participation from Vireo Ventures as well as existing shareholders Antler and P3A. The funding will further enable Scale Energy to increase its operational footprint across Germany and accelerate the deployment of industrial battery projects.

A number of high-profile angel investors with deep industry expertise also joined the financing round, including Dr. Christine Prauschke, former Chief Digital Officer at Enpal and CEO at leadity, Henning Gebhardt, former Global Head of Equities at DWS, and Thomas Rüschen, former Deutsche Bank senior executive. Further industrial expertise comes from Frankfurt based family office SKR Capital.

Battery projects will be financed through a CapEx facility provided by a DACH based energy-focused infrastructure investor with a commitment for 100 MW.

Scale Energy is building Europe’s largest decentralized network of energy storage. Instead of building expensive greenfield storage infrastructure, Scale Energy uses existing, often underutilized grid connections to store energy in batteries and balance the power grid. Additionally, by using the storage to shift electricity consumption from high- to low-price time windows and reduce their grid fees via peak shaving, industrials enhance their energy security, lower CO₂ emissions, and meet their sustainability targets.

At a time when Europe is facing the twin challenges of rising energy costs and transitioning to renewable energy, this solution has never been more important. Energy prices in Europe are now between two to three times higher than in the US. Frontier Economics estimates that battery storage could save €12bn in electricity trading costs by 2050, while Scale Energy predicts that its solution could save German industry more than €9bn per year.

Scale Energy has already developed a project pipeline of more than half a gigawatt at more than 100 industrial sites, mainly in Germany and Austria. Existing customers of Scale Energy include paper producers, automotive suppliers and aluminum manufacturers. Any organization that has access to a grid connection of more than 1,000 Kilowatts can benefit from Scale Energy’s services.

The three founders Christoph Koessler, Nikolas Fendel and Elias Aruna combine expertise in energy operations, infrastructure financing, and engineering. Elias Aruna, CEO, comments: “At Scale Energy, our mission is to support industrials in redefining their energy use. We deliver solutions that reduce energy costs, stabilize the grid, and drive decarbonization.”

Dörte Hirschberg, General Partner at Climentum Capital, adds: “Scale Energy is not only unlocking an immense problem in the energy transition, but the team is also solving financial scaling challenges. Few companies manage early on to bundle venture and infrastructure CapEx financing into a convincing structure that enables attractive offerings for industrial customers.”

Welcome VERBUND X!

The Corporate VC arm of Austria’s leading energy group VERBUND, VERBUND X shares our vision for innovation and electrification as key drivers of building the future energy system.

With VERBUND X on board, Vireo now partners with four major European utility companies — a clear sign of trust in our mission and recognition of the role venture capital plays in advancing the energy transition.

Franz Zöchbauer, Managing Director of VERBUND X, captures the alignment perfectly:

“Vireo’s focus on early-stage energy tech startups in Europe fits seamlessly with our strategy. Their experienced team, with a strong track record, opens the door to top-tier deal flow while creating valuable synergies through shared expertise and co-investment opportunities. Together, we can identify and scale innovative technologies to make a meaningful impact on the energy transition.”

VERBUND X now joins our network of strategic partners, which include, among others, the European Investment Fund (EIF) and EnBW New Ventures.

We’re proud to have such strong supporters by our side, all united by the same mission: driving the energy transition forward.

Thank you for your trust and collaboration: Michael Strugl, Franz Zöchbauer, Tanja Reiter and the entire team at VERBUND X.

We are pleased to announce the 12 innovative start-ups selected to pitch at the E-world energy & water 2025 in Essen.

This year’s application process was highly competitive, with over 60 companies from 13 countries applying. The calibre of ideas was exceptional, and selecting the final participants was more challenging than ever.

Here are the 12 winners driving innovation in decarbonising urban spaces:

• Podero
• Gridcog
• Pleevi
• VEIR
• BitWatt Systems
• j4energy
• Optimeering
• encentive
• Blindleister
• clever-PV
• reLi Energy
• Klimashift

These companies will present their solutions at our Call for Start-ups Pitch Event on February 11, 2025, addressing an audience of industry leaders, investors, and innovation stakeholders, including DSOs, TSOs, utilities, Stadtwerke, VCs, and accelerators.

📍 Join us at the 𝘍𝘶𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘶𝘮 in Hall 5 at 11:00 to learn more about their work and explore potential partnerships.

Last year, this platform proved pivotal in fostering meaningful collaborations and advancing critical discussions on sector coupling, digitalisation, and green mobility. We look forward to continuing this tradition in 2025 and thank all the applicants for their contributions to driving the energy transition forward.

We hope to see you in Essen for E-world 2025.

🌍Our Magaging Partner, Matthias Engel, is one of the featured investors of the “Strata Virtual Pitch Event: Decarbonisation Innovations Shaping the Future”.

Based in Berlin, Matthias brings decades of expertise in the energy industry and venture capital. At Vireo Ventures, he focuses on early-stage investments in energy tech, energy transition, and electrification. Previously, Matthias led corporate venture activities for major utility groups RWE AG and innogy SE and has been in the middle of the transitioning energy industry in the past 20 years, making him a powerhouse of knowledge in the energy sector.

Alongside other featured investors, Matthias will be exploring 5 startups decarbonisation and sustainability:

🚗 AI-powered battery tech for safer, cost-effective operations.
☀️ Solar cells replacing silver with copper—cheaper and greener.
🌬️ Wind propulsion cutting shipping emissions by up to 30%.
⚓ Zero-emission marine propulsion reshaping maritime sustainability.
🔋 Long-duration energy storage scaling from 10MW to 100MW.

👉 Register here: https://lu.ma/mcx7cuts
📅 See you at 15:00 CET on January 29th!

Today Vireo Ventures joins over 100 leading cleantech innovators and investors from across Europe in an open letter calling on the European Commission to deliver an ambitious Clean Industrial Deal. The letter, addressed to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and relevant Commissioners, emphasizes the urgent need for action in 2025 to address Europe’s geopolitical challenges, energy costs, and intensifying global competition.

To succeed on these fronts, the Clean Industrial Deal must send two clear market signals:

📈 Boost demand for cleantech: help industries become more competitive by adopting state-of-the-art cleantech, establishing lead markets, and integrating innovation into public procurement. This also includes maintaining the ambition of the Hashtag#ETS and Hashtag#CBAM – with startups such as ARTEM Technologie AG enabling efficient and effective reporting mechanisms.

💶 Unlock private capital through public de-risking: Expand EU funding and guarantees to mobilize Europe’s €38 trillion in private capital, scaling cleantech manufacturing while ensuring fiscal efficiency.

This is a make-or-break moment for Europe’s industrial future. With the right mix of policies and incentives, the Clean Industrial Deal can establish a compelling business case for clean technologies, drive industrial transitions, and pave the way for a prosperous and sustainable future for European citizens.

📄 Read the full open letter and join us in shaping Europe’s clean industrial future

Our portfolio company Green Fusion GmbH has raised €12M in a Series A round to revolutionize heating systems with AI-powered optimization. 🔥

Led by HV Capital and XAnge, this funding round includes participation from us at Vireo Ventures, alongside existing investors BitStone Capital, Übermorgen Ventures, kopa ventures, and Brandenburg Kapital GmbH .

Green Fusion is tackling a massive challenge: inefficient, carbon-intensive, and costly heating systems. With Germany targeting climate neutrality by 2045 and rising CO₂ prices pressuring the housing industry, property owners are racing to make buildings more energy efficient.

Their cutting-edge software uses real-time monitoring and AI to optimize systems, reducing both heating costs and emissions. On average, their solution saves 16% on heating costs – translating to €233,000 annually per 100 systems.

With this financial boost, Green Fusion will scale operations, expand into new European markets, and advance renewable energy integration. By 2025, they aim to equip 3,000 apartment buildings with their software.

We’re proud to support Green Fusion on their journey to transform the housing industry and accelerate the heating transition – not just in Germany but across Europe.

Congratulations to the entire team on this incredible milestone!

Big news from our portfolio!

We’re thrilled to announce our investment as lead investor in ARTEM Technologie AG’s €1.5M pre-seed round. With their CBAM Compliance & Carbon Reporting software, they are committed to driving the global transition to net-zero manufacturing.

This funding will help ARTEM enhance its comprehensive software and hardware platform, ensuring EU companies and global producers stay CBAM-compliant.

Starting Q1 2026, CBAM mandates CO2 reporting and certificate purchases for key imports like steel, cement, aluminum, fertilizers, electricity, and hydrogen. While the regulation aims to reduce emissions and combat carbon leakage, it poses significant challenges for importers and producers, particularly in monitoring, reporting and verifying primary emissions data across supply chains.

ARTEM simplifies this with seamless reporting solutions powered by real primary emissions data – and is aligned with our mission at Vireo Ventures to drive global transition towards a climate-resilient, decarbonized future.
Excited to be partnering with the impact-driven team: Nanxi Ding, Leo Rees-Murphy, and Ofir Weinstock