The fact that we import most of the energy resources and System & Equipment we use pushes us to produce some alternative solutions. The fact that we are in a very important strategic position and that 70 percent of the world’s fossil fuels are dispersed to the West through us. We are also a very rich country in terms of wind, hydroelectric and solar energy. It is necessary to increase the use of these natural resources and to take important steps regarding new energy technologies. It is necessary to make necessary initiatives in the field of energy by using high-tech solutions correctly and digitalizing them. We know that there are promising and very successful energy entrepreneurs (Energy Start Up) in Turkey. It is our duty to find and support them, to help accelerate their growth.
Start-Ups, which started to become widespread in the 2000s, have started to form an important part of business life in many countries today. Perhaps the greatest benefit of start-ups is that they can assert the awareness that it is not always necessary to have experience or work experience over a period of time to have a good idea. In this context, they ensure that more ideas become available in the market more quickly, without being dependent on the normally preventive bureaucratic and legal processes for the realization of that idea. The fact that start-ups generally consist of a small core team has led to the emergence of new ways of working, such as shared workspaces, which are part of this culture. We have started to witness developments in this field gradually, with many new graduates graduating from many schools with a business plan in mind.
This culture, which started especially in the USA and grew and became popular rapidly, has spread all over the world. Israel and Finland are among the countries that show the fastest development after the United States in this regard. There is also progress in this area in Turkey.
In our country, especially in energy efficiency, especially in the field of consumption, savings are possible with very good measurement and energy management. There are Energy Start-Ups that develop innovative solutions in this field. In this regard, Smart Energy Efficiency Solutions, Cleantech, Energy Storage, Hybrid Systems, Hybrid Solution Projects. Developing products or services for any stage in the supply chain of such systems will be a growth opportunity for startups.
In this regard, one of the remarkable studies on Energy Start-Up issues in our country; Sabancı University Technology-Based Startups Acceleration Center SUCool will launch international programs in the energy and clean technologies vertical for both early-stage entrepreneurs and growth-stage start-ups in 2018. 23 start-ups with separate acceleration programs were incorporated, 13 of them received investment and 11 of them are currently conducting global operations. As a result of the experience it has gained in the past years and its cooperation with the Netherlands-based Innoenergy institution, this Program has turned its direction to start-ups ready to open up to the global market with early stage entrepreneurs working in the field of Energy and Clean Technologies as of 2018. A good example for our country.
One of the notable examples on a global scale is Kenan Şahin, working on the energy density of lithium-ion batteries and a nickel-rich cathode production technique in his laboratory at Tiax, an energy technology development company in Boston. To that end, he founded Tiax in 2002 to further develop promising advances for green technology startups.
With the proliferation of such examples, our country can go a long way in the field of energy technologies.
