On August 3, the Skolkovo Foundation held a press conference devoted to the launch of GreenTech Startup Booster 2021, the international program for the development and implementation of innovative technology projects in environmental protection. The program was organized together with the Moscow Innovation Cluster and supported by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the Ministry of Energy and the Ministry of Construction, Housing and Utilities of the Russian Federation.

This has been the 2nd GreenTech Startup Booster held by the Skolkovo Foundation. It is the most ambitious accelerator program in Russia, aimed at getting startups involved in reducing negative human impact on the environment. Technological innovations are used worldwide to address the most relevant environmental issues. Most countries and major corporations redefine their development path to implement the strategy of environmentally focused growth.

Russia as a participant of global economy in the process of transition is now increasingly focusing on ‘green’ technologies. These technologies are one of the most attractive targets for venture investments, ranking third in terms of the investment amounts worldwide (after IT and Biotech).

During his introductory speech at the opening ceremony, Arkady Dvorkovich, the Chairman of the Skolkovo Foundation, noted that ‘green’ technologies are a priority both for the President and for the Government of the Russian Federation. Our country is working on the implementation of innovative projects in waste processing, capturing greenhouse gases, reducing hazardous emissions.

Pavel Sorokin, Deputy Minister of Energy of the Russian Federation assumed that the energy transition would take about 20 years and result in the growing competition in fuel and energy industry. However, the demand for new technologies in Russia is a good starting point to enter the global market. Competencies in RES-based power generation are being enhanced, technologies of hydrogen production both for domestic and export applications are being developed, and energy storage technologies and energy-efficient practices are being promoted.

Elena Semyonova from the Ministry of Construction told about the federal projects “Clean Water”, “Volga Rehabilitation” and about the industry-sponsored project “Smart City”. In the context of this project, the City IQ Index will be calculated for 203 cities, and sub-index “Environmental status” is part of this general IQ Index.

Vladimir Dyakov from the Moscow Innovation Cluster Foundation, was talking about some useful services offered by MIC (project exchange, technological competitions) which can be useful when integrating the environmental solutions into the practices of major Moscow companies.

Andrey Korobov, the Director General of YATEC PJSC, said that by using ‘green’ technologies Russia will soon be able to produce neutral impact on the environment.

Irina Musina, the head of the Accenture Sustainable Development Practice in Russia and Kazakhstan, presented the results of the study: according to those results, 98% of Russian companies recognized the priority of SDGs in their strategies, and are becoming more socially responsible.

Georg Wießmeier, Head of R&D and Innovation at SIBUR, emphasized that when working on a new product, it is important to think how it can be transformed.

Natalya Tretyak, a Vice-President at Gazprombank, confirmed that sustainable development principles make the basis of all business processes of the bank, and expressed interest in the projects which may make the bank operations more environmentally friendly.

The partners of GreenTech Startup Booster 2021 are: Yakutsk Fuel and Energy Company (YATEC), Accenture, Mosenergo, Gazprombank, Total Energies, Sibur, Gazpromneft, Norilsk Nickel, Helyx, Severstal, TMK, Almaz Group, EDF, Enel, Ilim, WIPO Green, Climate-KIC, the International Association of Science Parks (IASP), and Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN).

The first GreenTech Startup Booster was held in 2020. Among the participants were 853 projects from 190 cities of the world. The teams that passed the full cycle of the competition proved that the their solutions are in demand, relevant and efficient.

Applications are invited until September 30, 2021.

Please visit the following website to read more detailed speeches by each speaker.

https://sk.ru/news/greentech-startup-booster-2021-energy-transition-waste-recycling-and-social-responsibility/