Metris, an AI-driven solar energy platform tailored for commercial property owners, has recently secured £2 million in a pre-Seed funding round.
This significant investment was spearheaded by Octopus Ventures and Aenu VC, marking a pivotal step in revolutionising the approach of property owners towards evaluating, installing, and capitalising on solar energy in their portfolios.
The commercial property sector presents a vast revenue potential in solar energy generation, estimated at £22 billion. However, the intricate and often cumbersome processes involved in solar adoption – from forecasting revenue to negotiating energy contracts with tenants – have traditionally hindered commercial property owners from unlocking the full solar capability of their portfolios. Metris emerges as the pioneering AI-based “solar economy” platform, specifically designed to assist commercial real estate owners in navigating these challenges and harnessing the benefits of solar energy adoption, thereby enhancing energy resilience and security.
Metris, co-founded by former Octopus VC Natasha Jones and seasoned software engineer and startup entrepreneur William Whatley, offers a comprehensive software solution that simplifies and automates the transition to solar energy for commercial property owners. This allows them not only to monetise their solar energy but also to significantly reduce carbon emissions.
The Metris platform facilitates the entire solar journey for property owners, from preliminary assessments to installation and subsequent energy management. Utilising AI, it delivers detailed portfolio evaluations and swiftly computes the financial advantages of adopting solar energy, reducing a process that could take days into mere minutes. Additionally, it eases the administrative load of selling solar energy to tenants by digitising and automating contract processes. By eliminating these laborious manual tasks, Metris empowers commercial property owners to optimise their solar installations’ value and establish a dependable new revenue source.
The return on investment for solar installations can be realised in as little as three years, following which property owners stand to gain a significant passive income source for over two decades. Moreover, the adoption of solar energy in the UK’s commercial property sector could lead to a reduction in carbon emissions exceeding 14 million tonnes of CO2e annually, equating to the removal of 7 million petrol cars from the roads.
Natasha Jones, co-founder at Metris, comments: “We believe that by aligning financial incentives with environmental benefits, Metris holds the key to unlock scale adoption of solar in the commercial property segment. With Metris’ AI-powered platform, commercial property owners can easily leverage unused roof space to generate extra revenue and play a crucial part in securing a greener, more prosperous future for the planet.
“We’re at the forefront of the decentralised energy revolution, driving the adoption of solar within commercial real estate, and we’re excited to be joined by expert investors to supercharge our mission to turn every building into a power plant.”
With this injection of funding, Metris will launch its end-to-end commercial solar platform in the UK this month. This includes the launch of its AI-powered portfolio assessment tool for commercial real estate owners and its billing & payments solution.
Fabian Heilemann, founder & CEO of AENU, comments: “Operational energy use of buildings accounts for ca. 30% of total global energy-related CO2 emissions. Metris Energy is in a unique position to provide end-to-end solar operations for commercial buildings, by offering everything from property selection and installation to tenant onboarding, billing and payments. This innovation offers property owners a compelling commercial opportunity, whilst also advancing the green energy revolution.”
Hope Johnson, investor at Octopus Ventures, comments: “We are excited to back Metris’ vision to finally align incentives and enable every commercial property owner to generate its own renewable energy and sell this more sustainable, and cheaper, energy to tenants. Natasha and Will are helping commercial property owners reduce their carbon footprint, improve the energy efficiency of their properties, and accelerate the UK accelerate towards the large and legally binding commitments that have been made to Net Zero targets.”
Metris’ AI-powered software has already assessed over £2 billion worth of commercial real estate, paving the way for thousands of property owners to reap the energy and financial benefits of solar power.
This innovation comes as international efforts to reach net zero accelerate. More than 100 countries pledged to triple renewable energy capacity by 2030 at COP28, while the UK has already committed to decarbonise its electricity system by 2035. Faced with mounting pressures to abandon fossil fuels, solar power emerges as a compelling solution for commercial property owners, offering a dual advantage of securing renewable energy and generating additional revenue.
Commercial property owners can now sign up to Metris for free to assess the solar energy potential of their portfolio.
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