CDP Venture Capital launches CrossConnect, an acceleration programme entirely dedicated to start-ups developing infrastructure solutions or services. The initiative is part of the CDP Venture Capita National Accelerator Network, which now has 20 vertical programmes operating throughout the country.
CrossConnect was created with a total endowment of more than EUR 6 million, of which EUR 5 million was allocated by the CDP Venture Capital Accelerators Fund, for initial investment tickets and subsequent post-acceleration follow-on investments for the most deserving realities. Co-investors are Plug and Play Tech Center and Elis, which will also handle the operational management of the programme.
Also joining as corporate partners are Eni, through Joule, its business school, Saipem, Buzzi and Sonatrach Raffineria Italiana.
CrossConnect embraces market segments that enable the construction of infrastructure and large-scale works to meet community needs in an efficient and sustainable manner. The main areas of interest include digital technologies applied to the management and monitoring of infrastructures, including AI for predictive maintenance, digital twin, drones, innovative solutions for transport and civil infrastructures such as roads, ports, railway networks, airports, as well as infrastructures useful for energy production, transmission and storage, with a focus on renewable sources. Research areas also include advanced technologies for the efficient production and management of water resources, as well as greentech and circular solutions for green hydrogen production, chemistry, bio-refining and CO2 capture. These are just some of the areas that will characterise the accelerator, the scope of which will be extended according to the needs of the business partners, with the inclusion of further areas such as telecommunication and digital infrastructure.
The accelerator will run for three years, for each of which the partners will select up to eight start-ups that will have access to an initial investment ticket of EUR 150,000 and a four-month acceleration course. The best teams selected by the accelerator will also have the opportunity to obtain subsequent post-acceleration investments of up to EUR 400,000 to strengthen their solution.
“Infrastructures represent the connective tissue of a country: from essential services for citizens such as water, energy, transport and communications, through networks essential to the development of economy and industry such as logistics and distribution centres to venture capital, which is nothing more than a bridge of resources from investors to new entrepreneurs,” says Agostino Scornajenchi, CEO and General Manager of CDP Venture Capital, in a note. With the launch of CrossConnect in Catania, we intend to provide capital expertise and our network to help accelerate the growth of new digitally oriented companies capable of transforming the strategic infrastructure of the future’.
“CrossConnect is part of a process of digitisation of infrastructures in our country, with the ambition of creating a national reference hub for infratech in Italy and the Mediterranean basin. We want to bring Silicon Valley’s innovative approach to Catania, facilitating strategic connections between start-ups and large companies, and accelerating innovation in key sectors for the country’s development and for a digital and sustainable transition,’ says Tommaso Maschera, director of Plug and Play Italy.
CrossConnect will be a true industrial accelerator, aiming to support and scale up the most promising entrepreneurial projects in the area of innovative infrastructure. Together with large companies, we will develop testing and co-innovation projects aimed at facilitating their market entry. Our role will focus on the selection and accompaniment of industrial projects through experimentation and application to real cases in the country,’ explains Luciano De Propris, head of open innovation at Elis.
‘Participation in CrossConnect,’ adds Mattia Voltaggio, head of Joule, ‘is a valuable opportunity for Eni to develop technological solutions in the circularity, bio, and renewable and de-carbonised energy fields, and to accelerate possible synergies with the Versalis sites in Sicily, starting with the Ragusa site, for which a transformation and relaunch plan has been defined.
CrossConnect will be based in Catania in a coworking space a few steps away from the cathedral of Sant’Agata. The space will offer a meeting point for the start-ups, businesses and realities of the territory that will be involved, fostering collaboration and growth within a stimulating ecosystem. The call to participate in the first batch of CrossConnect is open from today until 5 December 2024, and Italian and international start-ups wishing to open a branch in Italy can apply. (photo by Bastian Pudill on Unsplash)
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