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03/19/25 Business models Innovation Driving digitalisation and innovation

SET Award 2025: dena announces the winners

Pioneering start-ups for a sustainable future: The SET Award honours innovations that drive the global energy transition forward. This year’s winners will pitch their solutions as part of the Berlin Energy Transition Dialogue (BETD).

Berlin, 19 March 2025. The presentation of the international Start-Up Energy Transition Award (SET Award) has been a highlight of the SET Tech Festival in Berlin for the past nine years. The SET Award promotes innovative ideas and solutions for a sustainable energy future, accelerating the energy transition. This year, groundbreaking start-ups were once again recognised across five categories: Clean Energy & Storage, Mobility & Transportation, Industry, Buildings & Construction, and Quality Energy Access & SDG-7.

The prestigious award ceremony brought together international start-ups, investors, and distinguished guests from business and politics.

Corinna Enders, CEO, emphasised the importance of the SET Award: "This award not only recognises outstanding innovations but also actively advances the transformation of our energy system. By supporting visionary start-ups, we are sending a clear signal about the urgency of the energy transition and encouraging the industry to continue developing sustainable solutions. Congratulations to all the winners for their exceptional contributions."

Set Award 2025
Set Award 2025

The SET Award 2025 Winners

The five winning start-ups were announced on the evening of 18 March 2025 at the Berlin Energy Transition Dialogue (BETD). Each winner receives prize money of €10,000 to support their ventures. Additionally, they will participate in the SET Panel at the BETD on 19 March 2025.

This year’s SET Award winners are:

Category: Clean Energy & Storage
Cowa Thermal Solutions AG, Switzerland, www.cowa-ts.com
Cowa develops compact thermal storage using phase-change materials, five times smaller than water-based systems. Targeting Europe’s growing heat pump market, Cowa enhances renewable energy integration and urban energy efficiency.

Category: Mobility & Transportation
Nyobolt Ltd., United Kingdom, www.nyobolt.com
Nyobolt pioneers ultra-fast charging batteries with longer life cycles and reduced reliance on critical materials. Its technology powers high-performance EVs and fuel cells, making electrification more sustainable.

Category: Industry
Cyclize GmbH, Germany, www.cyclize.de/en/
Cyclize converts plastic waste and CO₂ into syngas using a patented plasma reactor, replacing natural gas. This innovative solution reduces plastic pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, promoting a circular and sustainable chemical industry.

Category: Buildings & Construction
Concular GmbH, Germany, www.concular.de
Concular digitises the reuse of building materials, increasing reuse rates from 1% to 80%. By assessing buildings before demolition, Concular drives circularity in construction, saving costs and reducing waste.

Category: Quality Energy Access & SDG-7
Koolboks, France, www.koolboks.com
Koolboks provides off-grid, solar-powered refrigerators with ice battery technology, ensuring 24/7 cooling. Its Pay-As-You-Go model makes sustainable refrigeration accessible for African businesses and communities.

About the SET initiative

SET is a global innovation platform founded in 2016 by the German Energy Agency (dena) in cooperation with the World Energy Council (WEC) and with the support of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection (BMWK). The initiative identifies leading start-ups in the fields of energy transition and climate tech and connects them with companies, policymakers, investors and other start-ups. At its core, the SET platform consists of three pillars: the SET Award, the SET Tech Festival and the SET Newsroom. The SET Award is an annual international competition for innovative start-ups. The initiative also offers start-ups from all over the world a platform to present themselves: The Global Innovation Platform.

Further information: www.startup-energy-transition.com.