Press Release | Venture Studio BXVentures, in Collaboration with UCLouvain, Launch Thermo Power Systems

Louvain-La-Neuve, Belgium and New York City, October 19, 2023

BXVentures, a leading venture studio and climate tech specialist, in partnership with the Belgian university UCLouvain (Université Catholique de Louvain), is proud to announce the launch of Thermo Power Systems, a new climate tech startup.

The technology developed by Thermo Power Systems aims to substantially improve energy efficiency in industrial settings by converting wast heat into valued energy through the use of cutting-edge thermo electric generation modules.

Between 20% and 50% of energy in industrial processes is dissipated as heat, resulting in avoidable CO2 emissions and costs. In the context of rising structural energy costs and the depletion of natural resources, it is essential to provide innovative technological solutions to industries. This allows them to improve both profitability and their carbon footprint simultaneously.

BXVentures, a venture studio wholly dedicated to developing technological solutions to address climate challenge, will provide operational support for Thermo Power Systems as it grows and deploys its technology. After announcing its global venture studio strategy within a fund last month, BXVentures is scaling its already proven approach to unlock the abundance of trapped yet promising technologies within leading universities, like UCLouvain.

Relying on several years of research conducted at UCLouvain by Professor Pascal Jacques and his team, the startup has developed a proprietary technology which converts industrial heat losses into electricity using new, sustainable, and low-cost thermoelectric generators.

The innovative approach of Thermo Power Systems covers a range of applications, from the mass introduction of thermoelectric generators for large-scale conversion of wasted heat into electricity to the deployment of autonomous sensors locally powered by thermoelectric effects for industrial process monitoring. The startup has already begun marketing its products and services.

“The material developed by UCLouvain stands out from its competitors due to its unique combination of performance, ease of supply, low cost, non-toxicity, and wide range of application,” said Frédéric Lani (PhD), Managing Director of Thermo Power Systems. “Thanks to this and our expertise in designing and optimizing thermoelectric systems, we can address a multitude of situations with minimal impact on our clients’ operations.”

“The launch of Thermo Power Systems primarily represents the culmination of academic research proposing an innovative technological solution to two major environmental challenges: energy efficiency and resource depletion,” said Pascal Jacques, professor at the Institute of Mechanics, Materials, and Civil Engineering (iMMC) of UCLouvain.

“This initial collaboration with UCLouvain represents a genuine commitment to tangible climate solutions,” said Olivier Thirifays, Co-founder of BXVentures and Managing Director of Thermo Power Systems. “Our effective partnership with UCLouvain demonstrates our venture studio’s capability to work alongside universities to expedite the launch of new Climate Tech startups grounded in academic research."

"UCLouvain is delighted to see the research we conducted transform into positive impacts on society, environmentally, societally, and economically," said Jean-Christophe Renauld, Prorector for Research and Valorization. "There's a genuine, structured flow of mutually beneficial relationships between the start-up and the university, such as the licensing agreement steered by SOPARTEC (a member of the LTTO), the funding for new research initiatives, and the utilization of the LACAMI technological platform services."

Thermo Power Systems' innovative approach encompasses various applications, from the large-scale introduction of thermoelectric generators to convert waste heat into electricity to the deployment of self-powered sensors using the thermoelectric effect for industrial process monitoring. The start-up has already begun marketing its products and services in the market.

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Press contact

Frederic Lani
Managing Director
frederic.lani@thermopowersystems.com
+32455 11 60 21
www.thermopowersystems.com

Olivier Thirifays
Managing Director
olivier.thirifays@thermopowersystems.com
+32491 99 18 36 
www.thermopowersystems.com

BXVentures Press Contact
FischTank PR
bxventures@fischtankpr.com

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