Solartech startup GRYD Energy has raised £1 million Pre-Seed funding to finance its national expansion.
GRYD has developed a UK-first subscription model that allows developers and homeowners to install solar without ever paying for the hardware.
The high upfront cost of solar hardware is a fundamental barrier that has prevented millions of households from adopting the technology. It is estimated that 8.5 million UK homeowners have roofs well suited to solar but can’t afford the upfront expense.
GRYD funds and maintains a home’s solar hardware for the 25-year life of the system, saving developers up to £10,000 in hardware costs per home and enabling homeowners to reap the bill-saving benefits of solar from day one.
A GRYD subscription averages about £65 per month for a four-bed home. The monthly price is fixed and includes maintenance and insurance for the 25-year life of the system.
The business has already launched a successful three-home pilot project in Cornwall, which is serving as a testbed for its software. It has signed an energy export deal with renewable energy supplier Good Energy, securing an important revenue stream for the business.
With several projects already commercially committed, GRYD is set to deploy to hundreds of homes nationwide in 2025; positioning themselves to scale their service to 30,000 new-build homes over the next three years.
Mohamed Gaafar, CEO and co-founder of GRYD, said:
“With around 250,000 new homes being built in the UK each year, the untapped solar potential of our residential rooftops is immense and only continues to grow — as does the pressing need to ensure that Britain’s new housing stock is futureproofed and primed for a clean, energy-efficient future.”
The business is currently focused on new homes and will consider expansion to the retrofit market as it continues to scale.
Investors in the Pre-Seed round include Black Seed VC, an early-stage venture firm dedicated to Black business founders in the UK, and SFC Capital, and Oasthouse Ventures — whose Director, Simon Turner, has financed and scaled numerous renewable infrastructure businesses globally and has joined GRYD’s board as Investor Director.
Richard Thwaites, the founder and CEO of energy storage developer Penso Power (recently acquired by BW ESS), has also invested in the cpmpany.
Karl Lokko, Founder & Managing Partner of Black Seed VC, said:
“The GRYD Energy team’s vision for clean, accessible energy is matched by the experience, grit, and enthusiasm that’s impossible to ignore. We’re proud to stand alongside them as they turn ambition into impact.”
GRYD plans to use the new funds to invest in a series of key hires, secure further energy import and export partnerships, and expand GRYD’s service to include flexibility services - increasing customer savings by charging and discharging stored energy based on dynamic price signals to support capacity in the grid.
Lead image: GRYD Energy and Black Seed VC teams (L-R Mohamed Gaafar, Scott Whiteside, Tom Jordan, Yvonne Nagawa, Leonie Thomas, Mathieu Van Assche, Karl Lokko). Photo: uncredited.
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