Brisbane renewable energy company Redback Technologies has launched its international expansion, signing a deal with Duserve Facilities Management that will see the two organisations collaborate on a pilot to trial Redback’s technology in Dubai South, a new satellite city expected to become home to one million residents and airport.
With Duserve FM charged with the building and maintenance of Dubai South, the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) will see Redback install its hardware and software solutions in 20 commercial and 20 residential properties in the city.
Founded in 2015, Redback has created systems allowing residential and commercial users to capture, store, and manage solar energy, also providing them with insights into their energy consumption and performance.
As such, Redback will also be responsible for energy management and monitoring over a period of 12 months, beginning on 1 June. To facilitate this, Redback will have a dedicated project manager on the ground at Dubai South, and will also provide ongoing software and engineering support.
The two organisations will explore further opportunities upon the completion of the pilot.
Philip Livingston, founder and managing director of Redback, said the project is an opportunity to showcase Australia’s innovation in the region.
“Being selected to work with Duserve FM gives us the opportunity to demonstrate we are a leader of smart energy management solutions on a global scale, allowing us to not only explore these technologies within Dubai South and the UAE but also the [Middle East and North Africa] region,” said Livingston.
The deal emerged from a trade mission to Dubai led by Trade and Investment Queensland last year, where Livingston was invited to showcase Redback and its work.
Sam Taleb, chief executive of Duserve FM, said he “immediately” wanted to start talking to Redback after seeing it at last year’s event.
“Redback Technologies have had lengthy discussions with Duserve FM and Dubai South over the past few months and we are excited about this collaboration and the potential for the outcomes of this collaboration to support vision and goals of Duserve FM,” he said.
Redback’s expansion into Dubai follows that of fellow Brisbane startup Gruntify last October, which also signed an MoU with Duserve to provide the company with maintenance and security solutions.
Gruntify CEO Jamie Leach said at the time the MoU was made possible through the signing of a trade agreement between Deputy Queensland Premier Jackie Trad and executive chairman of Dubai Aviation City Corporation and Dubai South, Khalifa Al Zaffin.
The deal also follows Redback’s raising of $9.3 million in funding from strategic investor Energy Australia last October.
Image: Philip Livingston. Source: Supplied.
Trending
Daily startup news and insights, delivered to your inbox.