InnovHQ launches Hydro-Québec’s Energy Innovation Award

To support the development of forward-looking products and services, Hydro-Québec subsidiary InnovHQ is launching the Energy Innovation Award. The contest is open to SMEs and startups whose energy solution in the field of energy efficiency or transportation electrification is ready to bring to market.

Participants will be asked to demonstrate their project’s feasibility from an economic, financial, strategic and commercial perspective. Interested companies can register on the InnovHQ website until February 28, 2022. Fifteen projects will be selected for the final stage of the contest in mid-April 2022. The winners will be chosen based on the utility and impact of their project as a whole.

Once the evaluation has been completed, the first, second and third place winners will be awarded cash prizes of $50,000, $25,000 and $10,000, respectively. Information sessions will be offered on February 1, 9 and 23, 2022.

“With the 2022 Energy Innovation Award, we want to recognize remarkable companies and support them in developing promising products and solutions,” explained Simon Racicot-Daignault, CEO of InnovHQ. “It’s also a way for us to encourage collaboration with the key players of Québec’s innovation ecosystem.”

“This is a wonderful opportunity to promote the ideas of participating companies, with potential customized support for marketing and funding projects,” added InnovHQ’s Innovation Director, Stéphane Guidoin.

Many types of projects are eligible for the Prize: energy optimization potential modeling, vehicle instrumentation and telematics, and the fuelling stations of tomorrow. “For example, a start-up could have developed a use of artificial intelligence to control ventilation systems to better consume energy, or to optimize industrial processes,” commented Mr. Racicot-Daignault. 

About InnovHQ

Hydro-Québec created its InnovHQ subsidiary to stimulate the creation of sustainable energy innovations and to support innovation in Québec. InnovHQ strives to power the implementation of innovative solutions, primarily to accelerate the energy transition for the benefit of future generations. Its mission also includes managing the investment portfolio of parent company IndusTech and putting its activities into operation.