London-based Octopus Energy Group raises €319.7M to improve its energy technology platform

London-based Octopus Energy Group, a company that aims to use technology to make the green energy revolution affordable while transforming customer experiences, announced on Tuesday that it has raised $325M (approximately €319.73M) from existing shareholders in a fresh round of funding. 

In December 2021, Octopus Energy Group was valued at approximately $5B following a $600M funding from Generation Investment Management and a $300M investment from Canada Pensions Plan Investments Board. It was the company’s third major investment round since launching to the market.

The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments) has also pledged an additional $225M to Octopus’ efforts to accelerate and enhance the integration of renewables in the power system through the use of Octopus’ KrakenFlex platform.

Capital utilisation

Octopus Energy says it will use the funds to improve its energy technology platform, Kraken, and invest in products and solutions that can help solve the energy crisis and drive renewables at scale.

Octopus claims to be a leader in clean energy technology worldwide and one of Europe’s major investors in renewable energy, with 3 GigaWatt of energy projects under management. Its technology platform, Kraken, which is licenced to other large energy players, including E.ON and EDF in the UK, underpins its own retail, generating, and flexibility operations. Collectively, Kraken is licensed to support 25 million accounts worldwide.

Greg Jackson, CEO and founder of Octopus Energy Group, says, “Octopus will continue to do all we can to help customers through the energy crisis, while investing in better solutions to make sure it never happens again. We are in grasping distance of a clean, cheap, secure energy system – but it needs continued boldness from innovators like Octopus, and the backing of visionary investors like CPP Investments, Generation, Origin and Tokyo Gas.”

About Octopus Energy Group

Launched in 2016 by Greg Jackson, James Eddison and Stuart Jackson, Octopus Energy Group (OEG) aims to use technology to make the green energy revolution affordable and in the process, transform customer experiences.

The company’s domestic energy arm serves about 3.4 million customers with cheaper, greener power through Octopus Energy, M&S Energy, Affect Energy, Ebico, London Power, and Co-op Energy. Octopus Electric Vehicles is helping make clean transport cheaper and easier, while Octopus Energy Services is focused on bringing smart products to homes. Octopus Energy Generation is one of Europe’s largest investors in renewable energy, managing a £3.4B portfolio of renewable energy assets throughout the continent.

All these services are made possible by Octopus’s tech arm, Kraken Technologies, which offers a proprietary platform based on advanced data and machine learning capabilities. 

OEG’s cloud-based Kraken Technologies

Kraken automates much of the energy supply chain.  The platform claims to provide operational efficiency and outstanding service quality as it is designed to drive the smart grid; giving customers access to cheaper electricity when more renewable energy is available.

According to the company, this technology has been licensed to support over 25 million accounts worldwide, through deals with Good Energy, E.ON Energy, Origin Energy, and 4hundred.

About Canada Pension Plan Investment Board

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments) is an investment management organisation that manages the fund in the interest of more than 20 million contributors and beneficiaries of the Canada Pension Plan. The firm invests in public equities, private equities, real estate, infrastructure and fixed income. 

Bruce Hogg, MD and Head of Sustainable Energies at CPP Investments, says, “Furthering our partnership with Octopus is an important milestone as we continue to support the long-term transition to lower-carbon energy solutions.”

“Octopus is a significant innovator in the energy sector, and within the UK market, it is continuing to provide renewable and clean energy to a growing customer base. As global investors, we seek to work with leading tech-enabled energy companies and in the evolution of a low-carbon world. Investing in the energy transition is important to access untapped potential, and provide opportunities for delivering attractive long-term, risk-adjusted returns and to CPP contributors and beneficiaries,” adds Hogg.