Riga-headquartered Aerones, a provider of robot-enabled wind turbine maintenance and inspections service, announced on Monday that it has closed $30M (€27M) in growth capital in a round co-led by Lightrock and Haniel.
Blume Equity, Change Ventures, Mantas Mikuckas, Metaplanet, Pace Ventures, and Future Positive Capital also participated in the round.
The Latvian company says it is set to deploy the latest capital towards:
- Technical sales and functions
- Expanding presence and operation in Africa and Australia
- Bringing new services
- Increasing the number of robot service teams
Dainis Kruze, co-founder and CEO of Aerones, says, “Global challenges mean our mission – ensuring the effective operation of global wind power capacity – and our robot-enabled solutions have never been more important or in demand. With the support of our new and existing investors, we look forward to further scaling our operations, investing in our technology, and enhancing our offering.”
Future of wind turbine maintenance
Dainis Kruze and Janis Putrams founded Aerones to replace certified rope access technicians who are in short supply and are very expensive.
With its proprietary technology, Aerone’s aims to bring efficiency into the $30B wind turbine maintenance market through robot-enabled solutions that are up to six times faster, 40 per cent more efficient, and much safer than conventional solutions.
Aerones currently includes services like inspection (external visual, internal blade, lighting protection, ultrasound), maintenance (painting, ice-phobic coating, blade, and tower cleaning), and repair (leading edge) services.
The Latvian firm serves customers representing over 50 per cent of the world’s wind power capacity, including leading operators such as NextEra, GE, Vestas, Enel, and Siemens Gamesa.
Nigel McCleave of Lightrock says, “Aerones has developed a unique robotic platform that generates real ROI for customers in a huge growth market. We’re excited to be backing Dainis, Janis, and the whole Aerones team as they continue to reduce costs and inefficiencies in the global wind industry.”
Philipp Goehre, Growth Capital Lead at Haniel, says, “We are extremely proud to partner with Aerones, which is rethinking the way wind turbines will be serviced going forward. It’s a perfect fit for our climate tech investment focus, and we will actively support the company leveraging both our experience and our network.”
