Entrepreneurs, get ready! Applications for the 2017 EDP Open Innovation award are open. The global competition, which last year was won by a Brazilian team, is looking for innovative projects that can change the electric energy market. Once again, the best startup will win a Û50,000 prize.

Candidates from any location can apply until August 23 at edpopeninnovation.edp.pt. The teams will be evaluated by a jury consisting of representatives from EDP and Grupo Impresa, a communication company which was invited to be this year partnering company. The 15 best teams will join an acceleration program in Portugal, where they will have the opportunity to grow and test the solidity and viability of their projects.

This second stage will be held during the month of October and decide the three finalist startups. The teams will then pitch their solutions before a new jury, in an event to be held on October 26 in Lisbon, where the big winner will be chosen. In addition to the cash prize, EDP Open Innovation will offer all finalists the opportunity to present their projects on the Web Summit, the most important innovation event in Europe.

"Brazil won the competition last year and we are confident that Brazilian teams are prepared to present excellent projects in 2017," says EDP Director for Innovation L’via Brando.

Brazilian winners

EDP Open Innovation winner in 2016, Brazilian startup Delfos Predictive Maintenance from Fortaleza surprised the jury by presenting a solution that sought to address wind energy main problem: how to increase the productivity and life cycle of wind turbines without hiking operating and maintenance costs. To that end, they have created a system that monitors, analyzes and anticipates possible equipment problems in real time.

The team is currently working with EDP Inova‹o and EDP Renov‡veis to develop a pilot project and test the application in a real environment.

"EDP Open Innovation has given us a quality and credibility certificate which has opened many doors," says Guilherme Studart, one of Delfos partners. "The acceleration process and the opportunity to interact with a large player were certainly crucial to adjust our proposal to the reality of the market," he adds.

EDP and Innovation

The purpose of EDP Open Innovation is to foster the development of startups that contribute to changing and evolving the energy sector. This is the second edition of the competition, which had 5 Brazilians teams among the 15 finalists last year.

EDP has recently partnered with seven other global utilities to hold one of the largest startup acceleration programs in the world: the Free ElectronsGlobal Accelerator program. The competition gathered projects that will play a role in the next generation of ideas pertaining to clean energy, energy efficiency, electrical mobility, digitalization, and customer support services.

To learn more, visit: https://edpopeninnovation.edp.pt/wp-content/uploads/edp-open-innovation-regulation.pdf