These top Houston energy transition startups are hiring

Want to work for one of the top energy startups in Houston? These ones are hiring. Photo via Getty Images

About a third of this year's startup finalists for the Houston Innovation Awards are hiring — from contract positions all the way up to senior-level roles. And seven of these companies are advancing innovative energy transition technologies.

The finalists, announced last week, range from the medical to energy to AI-related startups and will be celebrated next month on Thursday, November 14, at the Houston Innovation Awards at TMC Helix Park. Over 50 finalists will be recognized for their achievements across 13 categories, which includes the 2024 Trailblazer Legacy Awards that were announced earlier this month.

Click here to secure your tickets to see which growing startups win.

When submitting their applications for the awards, every startup was asked if it was hiring. Let's take a look at what companies among the energy transition finalists you could land a job at.

Double-digit growth

Houston energy tech company Enovate Ai (previously known as Enovate Upstream) reported that it is hiring 10-plus positions. The company, with 35 current employees, helps automate business and operational processes for decarbonization and energy optimization. Its CEO and founder, Camilo Mejia, sat down for an interview with InnovationMap in 2020. Click here to read the Q&A.

Square Robot is hiring about 10 new Houston employees and 15 total between Houston and other markets, according to its application. The advanced robotics company was founded in Boston in 2016 and opened its Houston office in August 2019. It develops submersible robots for the energy industry, specifically for storage tank inspections and eliminating the need for humans to enter dangerous and toxic environments. Last year it reported to be hiring 10 to 30 employees as well, ahead of the 2023 Houston Innovators Award. It currently has 25 Houston employees and about 50 nationally.

InnoVent Renewables LLC is also hiring 15 new employees to be based in Mexico. The company launched last year with its proprietary continuous pyrolysis technology that can convert waste tires, plastics, and biomass into fuels and chemicals. The company scaled up in 2022 and has operations in Pune, India, and Monterrey, Mexico, with plans for aggressive growth across North America and Latin America. It has 20 employees in Mexico and one in Houston currently.

Senior roles and steady growth

Geothermal energy startup Sage Geosystems reported that it is looking to fill two senior roles in the company. It also said it anticipates further staff growth after its first commercial energy storage facility is commissioned at the end of the year in the San Antonio metro area. The company also recently expanded its partnership with the United States Department of Defense's Defense Innovation Unit and announced this month that it was selected to conduct geothermal project development initiatives at Naval Air Station in Corpus Christi. It has 12 full-time employees, according to its application.

Meanwhile, Syzygy Plasmonics is hiring four positions to add to its team of 120. The company was named to Fast Company's energy innovation list earlier this year.

Future roles

Other finalists reported that they are currently not hiring, but had plans to in the near future.

NanoTech Materials Inc., which recently moved to a new facility, is not currently. Hiring but said it plans with new funding during its series B.

Renewable energy startup CLS Wind is not hiring at this time but reported that it plans to when the company closes funding in late 2024.

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A version of this article originally ran on InnovationMap.

Nearly 20 Houston startups and innovators were named finalists for the 2024 Houston Innovation Awards this week. Photo via Getty Images

Houston energy transition innovators named finalists for annual awards program

best of the rest

The Houston Innovation Awards have named its honorees for its 2024 awards event, and several clean energy innovators have made the cut.

The finalists, which were named on EnergyCapital's sister site InnovationMap this week, were decided by this year's judges after they reviewed over 130 applications. More 50 finalists will be recognized in particular for their achievements across 13 categories, which includes the 2024 Trailblazer Legacy Awards that were announced earlier this month.

All of the honorees will be recognized at the event on November 14 and the winners will be named. Registration is open online.

Representing the energy industry, the startup finalists include:

Amperon, an AI platform powering the smart grid of the future, was named a finalist in the Energy Transition Business category.
ARIXTechnologies, an integrated robotics and data analytics company that delivers inspection services through its robotics platforms, was named a finalist in the Energy Transition Business and the AI/Data Science Business categories.
CLS Wind, a self-erection wind turbine tower system provider for the wind energy industry, was named a finalist in the Minority-Founded Business category.
Corrolytics, a technology startup founded to solve microbiologically influenced corrosion problems for industrial assets, was named a finalist in the Minority-Founded Business and People's Choice: Startup of the Year categories.
Elementium Materials, a battery technology with liquid electrolyte solutions, was named a finalist in the Energy Transition Business category.
Enovate Ai, a provider of business and operational process optimization for decarbonization and energy independence, was named a finalist in the AI/Data Science Business category.
FluxWorks, developer and manufacturer of magnetic gears and magnetic gear-integrated motors, was named a finalist in the Deep Tech Business category.
Gold H2, a startup that's transforming depleted oil fields into hydrogen-producing assets utilizing existing infrastructure, was named a finalist in the Minority-Founded Business and the Deep Tech Business categories.
Hertha Metals, developer of a technology that cost-effectively produces steel with fewer carbon emissions, was named a finalist in the Deep Tech Business category.
InnoVentRenewables, a startup with proprietary continuous pyrolysis technology that converts waste tires, plastics, and biomass into valuable fuels and chemicals, was named a finalist in the Energy Transition Business and the People's Choice: Startup of the Year categories.
NanoTech Materials, a chemical manufacturer that integrates novel heat-control technology with thermal insulation, fireproofing, and cool roof coatings to drastically improve efficiency and safety, was named a finalist in the Scaleup of the Year category.
SageGeosystems, an energy company focused on developing and deploying advanced geothermal technologies to provide reliable power and sustainable energy storage solutions regardless of geography, was named a finalist in the Energy Transition Business category.
Square Robot, an advanced robotics company serving the energy industry and beyond by providing submersible robots for storage tank inspections, was named a finalist in the Scaleup of the Year category.
Syzygy Plasmonics, a company that's decarbonizing chemical production with a light-powered reactor platform that electrifies the production of hydrogen, syngas, and fuel with reliable, low-cost solutions, was named a finalist in the Scaleup of the Year category.
TierraClimate, a software provider that helps grid-scale batteries reduce carbon emissions, was named a finalist in the Energy Transition Business category.
Voyager Portal, a software platform that helps commodity traders and manufacturers in the O&G, chemicals, agriculture, mining, and project cargo sectors optimize the voyage management lifecycle, was named a finalist in the AI/Data Science Business category.

In addition to the startup finalists, two energy transition-focused organizations were recognized in the Community Champion Organization category, honoring a corporation, nonprofit, university, or other organization that plays a major role in the Houston innovation community. The two finalists in that category are:

Energy Tech Nexus, a new global energy and carbon tech hub focusing on hard tech solutions that provides mentor, accelerator and educational programs for entrepreneurs and underserved communities.
Greentown Houston, a climatetech incubator and convener for the energy transition community that provides community engagement and programming in partnership with corporations and other organizations.

Lastly, a few energy transition innovators were honored in the individual categories, including Carlos Estrada, growth partner at First Bight Ventures and head of venture acceleration at BioWell; Juliana Garaizar, founding partner of Energy Tech Nexus; and Neal Dikeman, partner at Energy Transition Ventures.

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ExxonMobil invests over $200M in Texas advanced recycling sites

doubling down

ExxonMobil announced that it plans to invest more than $200 million to expand its advanced recycling operations at its Baytown and Beaumont sites that are expected to start in 2026. The new operations can help increase advanced recycling rates and divert plastic from landfills, according to ExxonMobil.

“We are solutions providers, and this multi-million-dollar investment will enhance our ability to convert hard-to-recycle plastics into raw materials that produce valuable new products,” says Karen McKee, president of ExxonMobil Product Solutions, in a news release.

The investment plans to add 350 million pounds per year of advanced recycling capacity at Baytown and Beaumont, which will bring ExxonMobil’s total capacity to 500 million pounds annually. The first Baytown facility started in 2022 and represents one of the largest advanced recycling facilities in North America by having processed more than 70 million pounds of plastic waste.

“At our Baytown site, we’ve proven advanced recycling works at scale, which gives us confidence in our ambition to provide the capacity to process more than 1 billion pounds of plastic per year around the world,” McKee said in a news release. “We’re proud of this proprietary technology and the role it can play in helping establish a circular economy for plastics and reducing plastic waste.”

Advanced recycling works by transforming plastic waste into raw materials that can be used to make products from fuels to lubricants to high-performance chemicals and plastics. Advanced recycling allows for a broader range of plastic waste that won't be mechanically recycled and may otherwise be buried or burned.

ExxonMobil will continue development of additional advanced recycling projects at manufacturing sites in North America, Europe and Asia with the goal of reaching 1 billion pounds per year of recycling capacity by 2027.

Houston-based Fervo Energy collects $255M in additional funding

cha-ching

A Houston company that's responding to rising energy demand by harnessing geothermal energy through its technology has again secured millions in funding. The deal brings Fervo's total funding secured this year to around $600 million.

Fervo Energy announced that it has raised $255 million in new funding and capital availability. The $135 million corporate equity round was led by Capricorn’s Technology Impact Fund II with participating investors including Breakthrough Energy Ventures, CalSTRS, Congruent Ventures, CPP Investments, DCVC, Devon Energy, Galvanize Climate Solutions, Liberty Mutual Investments, Mercuria, and Sabanci Climate Ventures.

The funding will go toward supporting Fervo's ongoing and future geothermal projects.

“The demand for 24/7 carbon-free energy is at an all-time high, and Fervo is one of the only companies building large projects that will come online before the end of the decade,” Fervo CEO and Co-Founder Tim Latimer says in a news release. “Investors recognize that Fervo’s ability to get to scale quickly is vital in an evolving market that is seeing unprecedented energy demand from AI and other sources.”

Additionally, Fervo secured a $120 million letter of credit and term loan facility from Mercuria, an independent energy and commodity group that previously invested in the company.

“In surveying power markets across the U.S. today, the need for next-generation geothermal is undeniable,” Brian Falik, group chief investment officer of Mercuria, adds. “We believe in Fervo not just because their EGS approach is cost-effective, commercially viable, and already being deployed at scale, but because they set ambitious targets and consistently deliver.”

In February, Fervo secured $244 million in a financing round led by Devon Energy, and in September, the company received a $100 million bridge loan for the first phase of its ongoing project in Utah. This project, known as Project Cape, represents a 100x growth opportunity for Fervo, as Latimer explained to InnovationMap earlier this year. As of now, Project Cape is fully permitted up to 2 GW and will begin generating electricity in 2026, per the company.

Other wins for Fervo this year include moving into its new headquarters in downtown Houston, securing a power purchase agreement with California, growing its partnership with Google, and being named amongst the year's top inventions by Time magazine.

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This article originally ran on InnovationMap.

Greentown raises funding, a new tree initiative in Houston, and more trending energy transition news

top stories

Editor's note: From DOE funding for underground power line research to Zeta Energy's big deal with, these are the top headlines that resonated with EnergyCapital readers on social media and daily newsletter this week.

Investors from Houston and Boston fuel Greentown with $4M commitment

A mix of public and private investors have funded Greentown Labs. Photo via GreentownLabs.com

Greentown Labs, a climatetech incubator with locations in the Houston and Boston areas, has announced it has received funding from a mix of investors.

The $4 million in funding came from both of the Houston and Massachusetts locations. Houston investors included Bobby Tudor, CEO of Artemis Energy Partners and chairman of the Houston Energy Transition Initiative; David Baldwin, co-founder of OpenMinds and TEX-E and partner at SCF Partners; and Rice University. Other investors included MassDevelopment and the City of Somerville.

“The challenges of the energy transition are immense, and the role played by technology incubators like Greentown Labs is essential,” Tudor says in a news release. “We believe this role, which is a partnership between academia, industry, philanthropists, entrepreneurs, and governments, is the best way to get to effective, scalable solutions in a time frame that the urgency of the challenge requires. We need all hands on deck, and this partnership between Massachusetts and Texas can be a role model for others.”Continue reading.

Houston launches Google-backed tool to address urban tree cover disparities

American Forests is aiming to assist with at least 100 cities to make progress on Tree Equity by 2030. Photo by Thomas Koenig/Big Pineapple Productions

The oldest national nonprofit conservation organization in the U.S American Forests has launched the Houston Tree Equity Score Analyzer, which was developed through local nonprofit Trees For Houston and local stakeholders from local government, environmental groups and the public health sector, and supported by Google’s philanthropic arm Google.org with a $450,000 grant.

To mark the launch, Trees For Houston and American Forest celebrated the partnership and worked to plant 50 trees at Shadydale Elementary in Northeast Houston on December 6.

“This marks a significant milestone for Houston's urban forestry efforts,” says Texas State Representative Senfronia Thompson at the December 6 event. “This effort goes beyond simply planting trees—it’s about creating the foundation for a greener, more inclusive future for our community. By uniting diverse resources and partners, including American Forests, Google.org and Trees For Houston, we’re showcasing a powerful dedication to enhancing the environmental well-being and quality of life in our urban areas.”Continue reading.

Houston company secures $10M contract to deliver subsea well decommissioning solution

Expro has secured a $10 million contract to provide a subsea well decommissioning solution, combining subsea safety systems and surface fluid management to support safe re-entry and fluid management for plugged and abandoned wells. Photo courtesy of Expro

Houston energy services provider Expro was awarded a contract valued at over $10 million for the provision of a well decommissioning solution.

The solution will combine subsea safety systems and surface processing design that can enable safe entry to the well and management of well fluids.

“The contract reinforces our reputation as the leading provider of subsea safety systems and surface well test equipment, including within the P&A sector,” Iain Farley, Expro’s regional vice president for Europe and Sub-Saharan Africa, says in a news release.Continue reading.

This Houston innovator's innovative corrosion detection tech is vital to the future of energy

Anwar Sadek of Corrolytics joins the Houston Innovators Podcast to discuss his company's growth and move to Houston. Photo courtesy

Houston-based Corrolytics approach is to help revolutionize and digitize microbial corrosion detection — both to improves efficiency and operational cost for industrial companies, but also to move the needle on a cleaner future for the energy industry.

"We are having an energy transition — that is a given. As we are bringing new energy, there will be growth of infrastructure to them. Every single path for the energy transition, corrosion will play a primary role as well," Anwar Sadek, co-founder and CEO of Corrolytics, says on the Houston Innovators Podcast.

The technology Sadek and his team have created is a tool to detect microbial corrosion — a major problem for industrial businesses, especially within the energy sector. Sadek describes the product as being similar to a testing hit a patient would use at home or in a clinic setting to decipher their current ailments.Continue reading.

Houston company's $2B carbon-negative fuel project to rise in Southeast Texas

Pathway Energy has announced a major sustainable aviation fuel project in Port Arthur, Texas. Rendering courtesy of Pathway Energy

Houston developer of ultra carbon-negative fuels projects Pathway Energy announced a series of commercial-scale sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) facilities with the first being based in Port Arthur, Texas.

The project, estimated to be valued at $2 billion, will be one of the largest decarbonization projects in the world.

Pathway plans to bring commercial SAF to market with its years of experience in waste and biomass conversion processes and technologies that include biomass gasification, Fischer-Tropsch, biomass power generation, and complex biorefinery and industrial processes. Continue reading.

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