“We're running out of time”

“A huge challenge”. This is how Richard Lagrand, head of innovation at UP – Upcoming Energies, Galp's new innovation factory located at LACS, in Lisbon, views the mission he has just embraced. “We all know the planet is running out of time with regard to dealing with a series of crises for which we are looking for solutions: human rights, energy, food, climate, zero emissions by 2050 ... and we´re running out of time".

Experienced in the field of innovation, Richard Lagrand swapped Startupbootcamp, a startup acceleration programme in Barcelona, for what will be the nerve center of Galp's innovation processes, located on the river Tagus. His past experience of working with startups will be essential in meeting the goals of the new challenge. Indeed, and as he himself acknowledges, this will be the priority for the remainder of 2020. “Discovering startups and scaleups with which we can work to solve the problems and challenges we have within Galp”. As such, he explains, it will be necessary to work closely with the oil business units – mid stream, sales, renewable energies – “to boost efficiency and increase customer satisfaction with 'turnkey' solutions already in existence, developed by scaleups, and which enable us to do business in the best possible manner”.

Another of the priorities defined for 2020 involves boosting the incubation and acceleration of projects and businesses. Or in other words, reveals Richard Lagrand, “creating new partnerships and values in disruptive technology, in both new and adjacent markets in the energy sector”. Here, he exemplifies, we may be talking about projects related to the production or consumption of energy that are not being worked on or developed today, but which may be in the near future.

THE CHALLENGE OF SOLAR ENERGY

This being a new area for Galp, but also a priority – the company is one of the main players in the solar energy sector in the Iberian Peninsula after the agreement entered into with the ACS Group for the acquisition, development and construction of photovoltaic solar projects in Spain –, UP is conducting an analysis of a series of technologies that help optimise the performance and yield of large-scale solar energy complexes, with the use of energy storage. “The specific nature of the challenge has enabled us to look at startups working in this field, contact them, assess how they are dealing with these challenges and if we can adapt them to our purposes”, replied Richard Lagrand when asked about the first projects being worked on at UP. “This area has a lot of potential and there is plenty to do”.

At the same time, says the head of the innovation factory, “we are looking at startups with credit ratings, algorithms and techniques that ensure we make the right decision with regard to investing in solar energy”. We need to guarantee, as quickly as possible, that anyone intending to invest has the capacity to do so. Hence, he stresses, “we're looking for companies that are working with open banking standards, which is something new, that will provide us with each investor's credit details and possibilities. This is not innovation in itself, but it will help accelerate this market”.