About Nesta

Nesta is an innovation foundation. For us, innovation means turning bold ideas into reality and changing lives for the better. We use our expertise, skills and funding in areas where there are big challenges facing society.

Mixergy – getting into hot water

What are we doing?

Nesta’s Impact Investments team backs tech ventures working in areas aligned with our 2030 impact goals. We have invested £750k in smart hot water tank provider Mixergy, in line with Nesta’s sustainable future mission that is working to decarbonise UK households. Nesta has invested alongside EDP Ventures and existing investors Oxford Science Enterprises (OSE), Kiko Ventures, Foresight WAE Technology and Centrica.

Why are we doing this?

Mixergy’s system is ten times faster at heating water than conventional systems and its patented approach to generating and storing hot water means that users heat only the water that is needed. The company’s mission is to cut heating bills, decarbonise homes and provide more flexibility to the grid. It does this by using sensors and controls to transform simple hot water tanks into smart heat batteries that have a lifetime of over 25 years. The Mixergy tank lasts three times longer than a regular battery and can be used with heat pumps and solar photovoltaics.

The Mixergy water tank is inherently more efficient at storing and meeting residential demand for hot water than conventional cylinders (12-21% more depending upon the fuel source), with further efficiencies delivered through its ability to learn hot water usage patterns (time of day & quantity of usage). Additionally, by reading grid tariff signals, Mixergy tanks help customers on time-of-use/flexible tariffs to generate and store hot water at off-peak times, creating the potential for further savings (up to 40%). The water tank is compatible with all fuel sources, creating an affordable stepping-stone in household decarbonisation.

What's next?

Nesta calculates that a Mixergy tank can reduce domestic emissions by 3-6% (based on 15% of domestic energy used for hot water production, with a 20-40% saving created by Mixergy’s smart design and controls ). Our investment will help increase sales, build new capabilities and heat pump-related products.

"We’re thrilled with this investment and pleased to welcome our new investors, EDP Ventures and Nesta. EDP Ventures is one of the biggest energy providers in southern Europe and their arrival is a catalyst for Mixergy’s expansion across Portugal and Spain, where we see great product market fit alongside solar PV. Nesta brings considerable experience to this sector alongside an emphasis on social impact which complements our drive to address fuel poverty whilst reducing carbon emissions. I would like to thank our existing shareholders, OSE, IPG, Foresight, and Centrica who continue to back our mission, as well as our incredible team at Mixergy who are making this journey happen."

Peter Armstrong, CEO of Mixergy

Author

Alex Hook

Alex Hook

Alex Hook

Senior Investment Director, Impact Investments

Alex is responsible for managing Nesta’s portfolio of direct investments in early stage UK technology companies, as well as Nesta’s fund of fund investments.

View profile