Peer Carbon, trading as PeerCo, joined the University of Birmingham’s Climate Innovation Programme (CIP) cohort 3, supported by HSBC UK and funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and delivered by the Catapult Energy Launchpad Platform.

PeerCo is a UK, women’s-founded, start-up spanning the energy and carbon sectors, with an aim to unlock finance decarbonisation projects under £2 million. PeerCo’s software offers customers the ability to digitally prove to investors/shareholders that a company is actually decreasing its emissions, which is increasingly in demand as regulation and voluntary reporting requirements grow.

The innovation

PeerCo’s clients can use verified data to turn into carbon credits or an Energy Attribute Certificates that can be sold to meet a financing gap in the business case for a transition action such as investing in electrification, behind-the-meter solar, or a battery. The software is able to digitally detect some instances of fraudulent or inconsistent data and is hardware agnostic.

The challenge

The lack of standardisation and recognition of Energy Attribute Certificates that relate to consumption – or demand side actions – means that they are less familiar to buyers of attributes than more common ‘guarantees of origin’ and their impact on the energy system, particularly if they can generate new revenues and unlock finance, is less well understood.

PeerCo joined CIP with the aim of building an ecosystem that would value the incremental carbon reductions in buildings, offering the third party verification required for a range of users. In the first stage, PeerCo was seeking support in identifying grants, assessing fundraising stage and potential, and understanding their customers. As they moved into the second phase, they were seeking to hone in on product market fit with a number of customers. And also aim to test PeerCo’s digital carbon reduction certificates’ product market fit and its wider systems implications.

The solution

The CIP programme provided PeerCo with support through several key initiatives:

Delivering specialised masterclasses covering business model development, IP strategy formulation, market entry planning, systems integration, consumer insights and fundraising strategy.

Facilitating valuable networking opportunities with industry experts and fellow innovators.

Through extensive collaboration with the Catapult specialists, PeerCo gained crucial insights into:

• Grid modelling and infrastructure requirements
• Policy development and regulatory frameworks
• Consumer behaviour and market dynamics
• Strategic development and funding

A pivotal moment came when the Catapult recommended pursuing funding through the Smart Manufacturing Hub, opening new opportunities for growth.

In Phase 2 of the CIP Programme, PeerCo expanded their reach by:

• Conducting product-market fit analysis for their digital carbon reduction certificates
• Participating in targeted workshops with the Catapult team
• Leveraging power systems modelling research to strengthen their behind-the-meter certification proposition

The Catapult’s comprehensive research and policy guidance on carbon regulation proved instrumental in shaping PeerCo’s strategic direction.

Impact

Through participation in both Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the CIP programme and support from delivered tasks and grant funding introductions, PeerCo advanced its technology from Technology Readiness Level 3 to 7. PeerCo is delivering its first sale of a digital, behind-the-meter, carbon credit, a first in the UK, which requires the Registry and Energy Attribute Certificate to be operational.

PeerCo has successfully expanded its services to small businesses, including Checklist Films and manufacturers such as First Editions, whom they met through the CIP programme.

PeerCo explored valuing the avoided carbon emissions from energy-related actions as carbon credits. During Phase 1 of the CIP programme, they gained insights that led them to move away from established voluntary carbon markets, which were designed for large-scale infrastructure investments and required significant upfront capital. In the built environment, most decarbonisation happens incrementally and in amounts too small for large-scale formal carbon projects. For these smaller investments, data collection poses the main challenge. Peer Carbon has been testing cost-effective ways to gather this data while establishing routes to monetisation. They were particularly interested in understanding how grid stability might be affected if more small energy technologies were activated during periods of low grid electricity carbon intensity.

Smart Manufacturing Hub expanded PeerCo’s potential customer base. The company secured funding to help a fellow cohort member develop their green production strategy. A detailed report helped PeerCo understand the threshold of flexibility needed for significant grid impact, enabling them to better test their flexibility offerings with stakeholders. The PeerCo team provided valuable feedback about implementing data-driven approaches, third-party verification, and transparent methodologies. These insights highlighted how to reduce carbon reporting burdens for companies – especially SMEs – while improving access to carbon-linked financing.

Next steps

Based on their progress and achievements, PeerCo’s next steps are:

1. Scale their digital carbon credit system: Expand their successful behind-the-meter carbon credit solution to more small and medium-sized businesses
2. Develop automated data collection: Invest in streamlining their data capture processes to make carbon reporting more accessible and cost-effective for SMEs
3. Expand strategic partnerships: Build on their successful networking to form new partnerships with grid operators and energy stakeholders
4. Further product development: Enhance their flexibility offerings based on the grid impact research findings
5. Seek additional funding: Leverage their increased Technology Readiness Level to attract more investment and scaling opportunities

These steps would help PeerCo build on their current momentum and expand their impact in the carbon reduction marketplace.