ADVERTISEABOUT USSUBMIT A STORYSUBSCRIBETERMS OF USEPRIVACY POLICY
Visit our family of Brands

Kanin Energy raises up to $100M for waste-heat-to-power projects

fresh funding

The startup says its energy-as-a-service offering lowers power costs, boosts power reliability and decreases emissions. Photo courtesy Kanin Energy

Kanin Energy, a member of the Greentown Labs climatech and energy incubator in Houston, recently raised as much as $100 million in capital to grow its energy-as-a-service platform.

S2G Investments led a round of up to $50 million, and the Canada Growth Fund chipped in an additional $50 million. The money will primarily support Kanin’s development and operation of waste-heat-to-power projects.

Kanin—founded in 2020 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada—builds and runs onsite power assets for large-scale energy users. The startup says its energy-as-a-service offering lowers power costs, boosts power reliability and decreases emissions.

The company operates a waste-heat-to-power project at Ohio’s University of Dayton. The project supplies zero-emission electricity.

Kanin has a pipeline of projects totaling about 50 megawatts of capacity. This includes a waste-heat-to-power plant at the Phillips 66 Mewbourn gas-processing plant near Greeley, Colorado.

“Kanin was built on the belief that industrial facilities already hold the solution to their own energy challenges, they just need the right partner to execute,” Janice Tran, CEO of Kanin, who is based in Houston, said in a release. “At a time when power costs continue to rise, [our] solutions are an important tool for our industrial customers to manage their costs, operations, and emissions.”

Marisa Sweeney, principal at S2G, says waste heat is a largely underused resource for lowering power costs, alleviating grid congestion and improving power reliability.

The waste-heat-to-power process captures thermal energy from industrial activities and converts it to electricity. This happens without using extra fuel or generating more emissions.

Kanin says up to 58 percent of energy consumed by industrial processes is lost as waste heat. This heat winds up in the atmosphere at thousands of facilities in North America, including oil-and-gas operations, cement plants, and steel mills, the startup says.

Kanin was founded in 2020 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It opened offices at Greentown Labs Houston in July 2022.

From Your Site Articles
Last month, the inaugural Houston Energy and Climate Startup Week 2024 successfully highlighted the GHP and HETI's mission. Photo via GHP

Highlights from the inaugural Houston Energy and Climate Startup Week

the view from heti

Houston has become the hub for startups and companies looking to scale innovative technologies that are transforming the energy industry and advancing a sustainable, low-carbon future. Last month, the inaugural Houston Energy and Climate Startup Week 2024 successfully highlighted this mission.

Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship, Halliburton Labs, Greentown Labs, Digital Wildcatters launched the inaugural startup week in collaboration with the Partnership’s Houston Energy Transition Initiative. The week brought together leading energy and climate venture capital investors, industry leaders, and startups from around the world.

Over 30 events took place from September 9-13, featuring more than 100 speakers and 125 startups. Attendance numbers came in at over 1,400 people across the week’s anchor events, and additional events were individually organized by organizations and startups in Houston’s ecosystem.

“By hosting the Houston Energy & Climate Startup Week, we're not just showcasing our city's strengths - we're actively shaping its future. This event is a critical catalyst for fostering collaboration, investment and talent development within the burgeoning energy and climate tech ecosystem. This week is about demonstrating our commitment to that future and inspiring the next generation of energy innovators,” says Janice Tran, Kanin Energy CEO & Co-Founder

The Kickoff event, sponsored by Repsol, Microsoft and BBVA, hosted fireside chats by several of Houston’s leading startups, including Solugen, Cemvita, Kanin Energy and Syzygy.

“Houston is at the forefront of not just energy innovation, but industrial innovation more broadly. With the momentum that's built over the last few years, it's the perfect time to showcase our progress and drive further advancements in climate solutions,” says Gaurab Chakrabarti, Solugen CEO and co-founder.

Houston is home to more than 65 incubators and accelerators and over 260 cleantech and climate tech startups. The region continues to build momentum and is focused on attracting investment for this growing sector, seeing a 577 percent growth since 2019. According to Partnership data, there has been over $1.95 billion and 175 deals with cleantech and climate tech startups.

"Houston is uniquely positioned to tackle the greatest challenge of our time - producing more energy with fewer emissions. This city is where energy innovation scales and opportunity thrives. As a natural hub for startups and investors, Houston brought this to life during Houston Energy and Climate Startup Week. Years in the making, this event was launched to answer the question: Can the whole be greater than the sum of its parts? This past week proved it can. We look forward to continue building on this successful week,” says Jane Stricker, senior vice president at Greater Houston Partnership and executive director of the Houston Energy Transition Initiative.

———

This article originally ran on the Greater Houston Partnership's Houston Energy Transition Initiative blog. HETI exists to support Houston's future as an energy leader. For more information about the Houston Energy Transition Initiative, EnergyCapitalHTX's presenting sponsor, visit htxenergytransition.org.

Kanin Energy has been named a top investible startup. Photo via kaninenergy.com

Houston cleantech co. secures Canadian recognition as a top investible startup

made the cut

A Canadian organization has called out the top 50 most investible energy transition companies in the country, and one Canada-founded, Houston-based startup made the cut.

The 2023 Foresight 50, Foresight Canada's 50 Most Investible Cleantech Ventures, sought to highlight the top companies moving the needle toward Net Zero. Kanin Energy — founded by CEO Janice Tran in Calgary in 2020 but relocated to Houston by way of Greentown Labs — developed a waste-heat-to-power concept for generating clean energy.

“The ventures included in this year’s Foresight 50 are nothing short of awe-inspiring. These game-changing innovators are scaling the critical climate solutions we need to solve the world’s most urgent climate challenges and accelerate the transition to net zero. Congratulations and thank you for all you are doing for Canadian cleantech," says Jeanette Jackson, CEO of Foresight Canada, in a news release.

According to the organization, 41 cleantech investors evaluated detailed profiles the companies submitted. They looked at investibility, potential environmental and employment impact, leadership and team, and probability of success, according to Foresight Canada.

"Canada has no shortage of inspiring innovators with the potential to solve global climate challenges. But these companies struggle to attract the long-term capital and recognition needed to make their businesses competitive on a global scale," Kanin Energy's team writes in its news release.

A year ago, the Kanin team visited Houston to see if the city could be a fit for an office. In July of 2022, Tran opened Kanin Energy offices in Greentown Labs.

“We’re hiring and building our team office out of Greentown. It’s been really great for us,” she previously told EnergyCapital.

Earlier this month, Kanin Energy was named a finalist in the 2023 Houston Innovation Awards.

The six finalists for the sustainability category for the 2023 Houston Innovation Awards weigh in on their challenges overcome. Photos courtesy

4 biggest challenges of Houston-based sustainability startups

Houston innovation awards

Six Houston-area sustainability startups have been named finalists in the 2023 Houston Innovation Awards, but they didn't achieve this recognition — as well as see success for their businesses — without any obstacles.

The finalists were asked what their biggest challenges have been. From funding to market adoption, the sustainability companies have had to overcome major obstacles to continue to develop their businesses.

The awards program — hosted by EnergyCapital's sister site, InnovationMap, and Houston Exponential — will name its winners on November 8 at the Houston Innovation Awards. The program was established to honor the best and brightest companies and individuals from the city's innovation community. Eighteen energy startups were named as finalists across all categories, but the following responses come from the finalists in the sustainability category specifically.

    Click here to secure your tickets to see who wins.

    1. Securing a commercial pilot

    "As an early-stage clean energy developer, we struggled to convince key suppliers to work on our commercial pilot project. Suppliers were skeptical of our unproven technology and, given limited inventory from COVID, preferred to prioritize larger clients. We overcame this challenge by bringing on our top suppliers as strategic investors. With a long-term equity stake in Fervo, leading oilfield services companies were willing to provide Fervo with needed drilling rigs, frack crews, pumps, and other equipment." — Tim Latimer, founder and CEO of Fervo Energy

    2. Finding funding

    "Securing funding in Houston as a solo cleantech startup founder and an immigrant with no network. Overcome that by adopting a milestone-based fundraising approach and establishing credibility through accelerator/incubator programs." — Anas Al Kassas, CEO and founder of INOVUES

    "The biggest challenge has been finding funding. Most investors are looking towards software development companies as the capital costs are low in case of a risk. Geothermal costs are high, but it is physical technology that needs to be implemented to safety transition the energy grid to reliable, green power." — Cindy Taff, CEO of Sage Geosystems

    3. Market adoption

    "Market adoption by convincing partners and government about WHP as a solution, which is resource-intensive. Making strides by finding the correct contacts to educate." — Janice Tran, CEO and co-founder of Kanin Energy

    "We are creating a brand new financial instrument at the intersection of carbon markets and power markets, both of which are complicated and esoteric. Our biggest challenge has been the cold-start problem associated with launching a new product that has effectively no adoption. We tackled this problem by leading the Energy Storage Solutions Consortium (a group of corporates and battery developers looking for sustainability solutions in the power space), which has opened up access to customers on both sides of our marketplace. We have also leveraged our deep networks within corporate power procurement and energy storage development to talk to key decision-makers at innovative companies with aggressive climate goals to become early adopters of our products and services." — Emma Konet, CTO and co-founder of Tierra Climate

    4. Long scale timelines

    "Scaling and commercializing industrial technologies takes time. We realized this early on and designed the eXERO technology to be scalable from the onset. We developed the technology at the nexus of traditional electrolysis and conventional gas processing, taking the best of both worlds while avoiding their main pitfalls." — Claus Nussgruber, CEO of Utility Global

    At last year's awards program, Cemvita Factory's co-founders, Tara and Moji Karimi, accepted the award for the Green Impact Business category. This year, Moji Karimi served as a judge

    18 Houston energy startups named finalists for innovation awards program

    companies to watch

    The 2023 Houston Innovation Awards announced its 52 finalists — a large portion of which are promising energy transition startups.

    The awards program — hosted by EnergyCapital's sister site, InnovationMap, and Houston Exponential — will name its winners on November 8 at the Houston Innovation Awards. The program was established to honor the best and brightest companies and individuals from the city's innovation community.

    The following startups, which all have an energy transition element to their business, received a finalist position in one or two categories.

    Click here to secure your tickets to see who wins.

    • ALLY Energy, helping energy companies and climate startups find, develop, and retain great talent, scored two finalist positions — one in the Female-Owned Business category and the other in the Social Impact Business category.
    • Eden Grow Systems, next generation farming technologies, is a finalist in the People's Choice: Startup of the Year category.
    • Feelit Technologies, nanotechnology for preventive maintenance to eliminate leaks, fires and explosions, increase safety and reduce downtime, is a finalist in the Female-Owned Business category and the People's Choice: Startup of the Year category.
    • Fervo Energy, leveraging proven oil and gas drilling technology to deliver 24/7 carbon-free geothermal energy, scored two finalist positions — one in the Sustainability Business category and the other in the People's Choice: Startup of the Year category.
    • FluxWorks, making frictionless gearboxes for missions in any environment, is a finalist in the Hardtech Business category.
    • Helix Earth Technologies, decarbonizing the built environment and heavy industry, is a finalist in the Hardtech Business category.
    • INOVUES, re-energizing building facades through its non-invasive window retrofit innovations, making building smarter, greener, and healthier for a better and sustainable future, was named a finalist in the Sustainability Business category.
    • Kanin Energy, helping heavy industry monetize their waste heat and decarbonize their operations, was named a finalist in the BIPOC-Owned Business and the Sustainability Business categories.
    • Mars Materials, developing a carbon-negative pathway for carbon fiber and acrylamide production using CO2 and biomass as raw materials, is a finalist in the BIPOC-Owned Business category.
    • Molecule, an energy/commodity trading risk management software that provides users with an efficient, reliable, responsive platform for managing trade risk, is a finalist in the Digital Solutions Business category.
    • Rhythm Energy, 100 percent renewable electricity service for residential customers in Texas, is a finalist in the People's Choice: Startup of the Year category.
    • Sage Geosystems, a cost-effective geothermal baseload energy solution company, also innovating underground energy storage solutions, was named a finalist in the Sustainability Business category.
    • Solugen, decarbonizing the chemical industry, is a finalist in the Hardtech Business category.
    • Square Robot, applying robotic technology to eliminate the need to put people into dangerous enclosed spaces and eliminate taking tanks out of service, is a finalist in the Hardtech Business category.
    • Syzygy Plasmonics, a deep decarbonization company that builds chemical reactors designed to use light instead of combustion to produce valuable chemicals like hydrogen and sustainable fuels, is a finalist in the Hardtech Business category.
    • Tierra Climate, decarbonizing the power grid faster by helping grid-scale batteries monetize their environmental benefits and change their operational behavior to abate more carbon, was named a finalist in the Sustainability Business category.
    • Utility Global, a technology company converting a range of waste gases into sustainable hydrogen and syngas, was named a finalist in the Sustainability Business category.
    • Venus Aerospace, a hypersonics company on track to fly reusable hypersonic flight platforms by 2024, is a finalist in the Hardtech Business category.

    Additionally, two energy companies were named to the Corporate of the Year category, which honors corporations that supports startups and/or the Houston innovation community. Aramco Ventures and Chevron Technology Ventures are two of the four finalists in this category.

    Lastly, Jason Ethier, co-founder of Lambda Catalyzer and host of the Energy Tech Startups podcast, and Kendrick Alridge, senior manager of community at Greentown Labs, scored finalist positions in the Ecosystem Builder category, as individuals who have acted as leaders in developing Houston’s startup ecosystem.

    Click here to see the full list of finalists.

    The deadline to apply to participate in an upcoming energy-focused event is approaching. Photo courtesy of Rice

    Rice Alliance calls for participants for its annual energy conference

    now's the time to apply

    This year marks the 20th anniversary of Energy Tech Venture Day, a one-day symposium for energy innovation put on by the Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship. The organization is currently calling for applications for startups interested in participating.

    The event is taking place on September 21 at Rice University and will bring together energy innovators, investors, corporate leaders, and the rest of the energy ecosystem. The programming will include panels and discussions as well as startup pitches from the Rice Alliance's Clean Energy Accelerator 2023 cohort.

    In addition to the CEA pitches, energy tech startups from around the world can apply to be a part of the day and be in the running to be recognized as a select group as the "most-promising" at the conclusion of the pitches. Applications can be filled out online and are due July 14. Registration is also open online.

    According to Rice, 90 or so companies will be selected to participate in one-on-one meetings with around 75 investors. The organization conducts a unique matchmaking round that pairs up investors and founders for four to 10 of these office hour meetings which will take place the day before the main event.

    On the day of the Energy Tech Venture Day, around 40 companies will pitch to the rest of the crowd. At the end of the day and based off the investor feedback from the one-on-one meetings, 10 energy tech startups will be deemed the most-promising businesses and be presented with awards.

    Last year, over a third of the companies that pitched were based in the Houston area. Two Houston-based companies received awards at the end of the day, including:

    • Kanin Energy, which works with heavy Industry to turn their waste heat into a clean baseload power source. The platform also provides tools such as project development, financing, and operations.
    • Syzygy Plasmonics, which is commercializing its light-reacting energy, which would greatly reduce carbon emissions in the chemical industry. The technology originated out of Rice University.
    Ad Placement 300x100
    Ad Placement 300x600

    CultureMap Emails are Awesome

    Property Showcase

    Rice University spinouts named among 50 top cleantech companies to watch

    green team

    Two Rice University spinouts, Coflux Purification and DexMat, appear on a new list of the world’s 50 cleantech companies to watch.

    Cleantech Group’s 2026 Cleantech 50 to Watch list recognizes early-stage companies “creating groundbreaking solutions to address some of the world’s most pressing environmental and sustainability challenges.”

    Cleantech Group, a market research, consulting, and events company, selects the 50 honorees based on insights from analysts and early-stage innovators, along with public nominations.

    Destroying “forever chemicals”

    Coflux, founded in 2024, offers an onsite treatment system that captures and destroys manufactured “forever chemicals”—per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances—in water and wastewater. It’s a member of Greentown Houston.

    Alec Ajnsztajn, CEO; Jeremy Daum, chief technology officer; and Dana Vazquez, chief commercial officer, co-founded Coflux. Ajnsztajn and Daum earned doctoral degrees from Rice, and Vazquez earned an MBA from the university.

    Coflux spun out of Rice labs directed by professors Rafael Verduzco and Pulickel Ajayan.

    Last year, Coflux received a $175,000 grant from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture. The startup has also raised more than $500,000 in non-dilutive funding, including $80,000 awarded in 2024 by Rice’s One Small Step Grant program.

    Promoting an alternative to copper

    DexMat, founded in 2015, produces carbon nanotube products such as fibers, yarns, cables, and fabric. The company’s products address demand for materials that can reduce carbon emissions, according to CB Insights.

    Its main product, Galvorn, is a copper alternative made of carbon nanotube fibers. CB Insights says Galvorn is engineered to be lighter and stronger than traditional conductive materials like carbon and steel. It’s used in industries such as energy, aerospace, defense, automotive, consumer electronics, and health care.

    DexMat emerged from Matteo Pasquali’s Carbon Lab at Rice. Pasquali, co-founder of DexMat, co-invented the company’s technology with the late Nobel Prize-winning chemist Rick Smalley. Smalley was a professor of chemistry, physics, and astronomy at Rice.

    Pasquali is a professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering, chemistry, materials science, and nanoengineering at Rice. He co-founded DexMat with Rice graduate Dmitri Tsentalovich, the company’s director of product innovation.

    Earlier this year, DexMat raised $5 million in seed funding from Non Sibi Ventures, Governance Partners, Tailwind Futures, BetterWay, Capital Factory, and other investors. The company also secured $3 million in non-dilutive funding.

    In 2023, DexMat raised $3 million in a pre-seed round led by Shell Ventures.

    Stardust Power, Power Electronics expand to Houston and more top energy news

    Trending News

    Editor's note: October brings big updates for the energy transition sector, with two companies expanding to Houston and two more announcing major funding. Here are the five most-read stories published on EnergyCapital from September 30-October 15, 2026:

    Lithium refiner expands into Houston with new Energy Corridor office

    Battery-grade lithium carbonate manufacturer Stardust Power has expanded into Houston’s Energy Corridor, the company tells EnergyCapitalHTX. The company’s new office will serve as a project execution hub to support operations and planning for the company’s forthcoming lithium refinery in Muskogee, Oklahoma. The Greenwich, Connecticut-based, publicly traded company says the facility will be one of the largest lithium refining operations in the United States. The refinery is expected to have production capacity of up to 50,000 metric tons per year and seeks to address the critical shortage of U.S. lithium refining capacity. Continue reading.

    Houston geothermal company picks Nevada site for commercial-scale project

    Sage Geosystems, a Houston-based developer of geothermal power systems, has chosen a site in Nevada for its commercial-scale Project Vector facility. The company’s two-well enhanced geothermal system (EGS) will deliver around-the-clock geothermal heat to Ormat Technologies’ Blue Mountain geothermal power plant in Winnemucca, Nevada. The startup expects to begin drilling the first well later this year, with the first electricity to be generated in 2027 and full-scale production to start in 2028. Continue reading.

    Houston carbon removal company secures $35M in financing

    Houston-based Vaulted Deep, a waste management and carbon removal company, has announced a major $35 million debt facility from Italian investment bank Mediobanca to support its national expansion. U.K.-based market energy solutions CFP Energy arranged the deal, which is “the largest publicly disclosed U.S. commercial debt deal in durable carbon removal to be secured by long-term purchase contracts,” according to a news release from the companies. Continue reading.

    Hertha Metals raises $133M Series A round, plans high-purity iron plant

    Conroe-based Hertha Metals has closed a $133.65 million Series A round that includes a $65 million equity investment from the Pentagon. The startup uses a one-step process to convert iron into molten steel or high-purity iron. Khosla Ventures and Doerr Capital co-led the round, with participation from CEV, Pear Ventures, Gates Frontier, Niterra SUISO no MORI Fund, Toyota Ventures, and Siemens Financial Services. Continue reading.

    European cleantech company breaks ground on Houston manufacturing site

    Spanish renewable energy company Power Electronics broke ground on its new 53-acre Houston campus on Sept. 24. The new site is expected to create over 400 local jobs and deliver 40 gigawatts of production capacity per year. The company said that the campus is expected to be the largest manufacturing site for power conversion systems in the U.S. Power Electronics specializes in solar, energy storage, data centers and electrification technologies. Continue reading.

    TotalEnergies expands solar joint venture with $1.2B portfolio in Texas, Ohio

    solar expansion

    TotalEnergies, a French company whose U.S. headquarters is in Houston, announced this month that it is expanding its renewable energy joint venture with New York-based investment firm KKR by adding 700 megawatts of utility-scale solar projects.

    The deal will add three utility-scale solar assets in Texas and Ohio, which are expected to reach commercial operation by Q1 2027, according to a news release from the company. The portfolio is valued at $1.2 billion.

    The 50/50 joint venture between TotalEnergies and KKR currently holds 1.4 gigawatts of renewable energy and will grow to 2.1 gigawatts.

    The new deal is expected to close this year. Once completed, TotalEnergies will operate the assets. The electricity generated from the solar projects will be sold to third parties, the company reports.

    The companies originally formed the joint venture about a year ago when TotalEnergies sold KKR a 50 percent stake in a North American solar portfolio valued at $1.25 billion. The deal originally included six utility-scale solar assets, primarily located in the U.S.

    “TotalEnergies is a renewable energy industry leader globally, and we are thrilled to establish this joint venture with the TotalEnergies team to support their renewables business," Cecilio Velasco, managing director KKR, said in a release last year. “We have long been investors in renewables through our infrastructure platform, having committed more than $23 billion to date in energy transition investments. TotalEnergies’ North American solar portfolio is a great fit for us, representing high-quality renewable energy assets with long term contracts.”

    TotalEnergies reports that by June 2026 it held more than 37 gigawatts of gross renewable power generation capacity. It aims to achieve over 100 terawatt-hours of net electricity production by 2030.

    The company signed a major power purchase agreement with Google earlier this year. Through the deal, TotalEnergies will supply the tech giant with 1 gigawatt of solar power for its data centers in Texas over a 15-year span.

    However, the company also recently redirected nearly $1 billion in capital away from wind energy projects and "decided to renounce offshore wind development in the United States." Read more here.

    View All Listings