Melbourne energy grid fault detection startup raises $50 million

A veteran startup detecting faults in powerlines to prevent bushfires has raised $50 million from US and local venture funds.

IND Technology was cofounded by RMIT Professor Alan Wong and Kokwai Leu Melbourne in 2013 following the 2009 Black Saturday fires, to develop Early Fault Detection (EFD) systems for preventing bushfires and grid failures.

The business went looking for funding up to $60 million back in May at a valuation estimated to be between $200m and $300m at the time.

Los Angeles climate tech VC Angeleno Group and New York’s Energy Impact Partners LP led the raise with support from US utilities company Edison International and local Virescent Ventures.

IND Technology will also use the capital to expand its machine-learning engineering team and enhance its EFD system’s ability to interpret complex fault data and deliver actionable insights.

It now has operations in the US, Canada, and Malaysia, with around 15,000 EFD units now sold across six countries, and claims to have prevented more than 500 fire events globally. Clients include AusNet Services, Powercor, Western Power, and Endeavour Energy in Australia.

The IND monitoring platform detects the precursors to electrical failures in energy grids. Sensors mounted on poles up to 5km apart capture radio-frequency signals emitted by stressed or failing components. The signals are analysed in real time, locating anomalies to within 10m, so that maintenance crews can intervene.  The technology improves reliability and resiliency, reduces the economic and social impacts of grid failures and helps lower maintenance and operating costs.

Prof. Wong, IND’s CEO, said having the support of a local investor affirms the value of homegrown innovation and Australia’s ability to lead in practical, life-saving engineering.

“For almost a decade, we’ve worked side-by side with Australian utilities to prove that the EFD system can improve grid resiliency and reduce the risk of bushfires, with eight local pilots showing how valuable this technology can be  when it’s deployed at scale,” he said.

“What matters most to us is making sure this technology reaches  the places where it can make the greatest difference. With new partners, including local partners like Virescent Ventures who understand the Australian energy landscape, our focus is now on scaling our delivery, field support and deployments globally.”

Anil Tammineedi said IND’s approach revolutionises the way critical power infrastructure assets are monitored.

“For decades, utility companies have relied on manual inspections, sending crews to check lines mile by mile,” he said.

“IND Technology’s solution represents a true step change, enabling continuous detection of emerging electrical faults before they escalate into outages or wildfires. It’s one of the most advanced and impactful grid monitoring systems we’ve seen, and no team is better positioned to capitalise on the growing demand for smarter, safer and more efficient networks.”

Virescent Ventures managing partner Kristin Vaughan said grid reliability and resilience are among the most critical challenges and opportunities for the energy transition.

“Ageing infrastructure, hotter and drier summers, and rising bushfire risk all mean utilities need smarter tools to detect faults before they become costly outages or catastrophic fires events,” she said.

“IND Technology has already secured global traction and deep adoption with their proven, homegrown solution preventing fires and improving reliability across major networks in Australia and North America, but the potential is vast.”