Allens will give a legal leg-up to energy and natural resources start-ups in Perth and Brisbane as legal partners for KPMG's Energise 2.0 accelerator program.
Designed to boost innovation in the energy and natural resources industries, Energise 2.0 is the second iteration of the largest sector-specific accelerator in the southern hemisphere.
The second-generation Energise builds on the success of the 2015 program which saw $650,000 of pilot projects and capital delivered to eight Australian start-ups.
Allens' role as legal advisor will give participants access to the expertise of both Allens Accelerate, the firm's start-up and high-growth companies practice, and Allens' market-leading Energy, Resources & Infrastructure team.
“We have already seen the potential to drive real benefit for startups and high-growth companies by partnering with corporates and other service providers in the innovation space through our foundation membership of fintech hub Stone and Chalk in Sydney, of which KPMG is also a foundation member,” said Gavin Smith, Partner and co-head of Allens Accelerate.
The 12-week accelerator is designed to foster collaboration and co-creation between start-ups and top tier ENR sector corporates, and help to deliver step change improvements in cost, productivity, social, environmental and safety performance.
“Thanks to our experience with Allens Accelerate, our first-to-market practice for startups and high-growth companies, we also know that there is huge demand for high-quality legal advice tailored to startups,” said Valeska Bloch, Managing Associate and co-head of Allens Accelerate.
“We are delighted to be working with KPMG and Energise 2.0's startups and corporate partners to support the next generation of disruption in energy and natural resources,” she said
According to KPMG, corporate participants so far in this year’s accelerator include Woodside Energy, Wesfarmers Chemicals Energy & Fertilisers, and South32. They will complete a new corporate curriculum specially developed following the 2015 Energise program to help large organisations maximise the benefits of collaborating with start-ups.
The Energise ENR accelerator runs from late 2016 to early 2017 with a 6-week break over December and January.
“By introducing new ideas and perspectives on energy and natural resources, start-ups have the potential to make real, transformative changes to the sector, which we can already see taking shape here in Perth,” said Partner Andrew Pascoe, who leads Allens' innovation stream in Perth.
“We're looking forward to working with the participants in Energise 2.0 as they kick-start their big ideas, making sure their legal foundations are as strong as possible to support their future growth.”
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