ARENA launches $30m startup fund

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has launched a new $30 million funding program to help early-stage technologies from development towards commercialisation.

The Launchpad program will provide grants to Australian companies, developing technologies aligned with ARENA's mandate, while also funding organisations that support early-stage renewable energy and climate businesses.

ARENA chief executive Darren Miller said program was designed to address a funding gap that can prevent promising technologies from progressing beyond the early stages of development.

"Australia has no shortage of talented founders and ambitious ideas, but early-stage funding can be difficult to secure for technologies that take time and capital to develop, particularly for energy and climate startups," Miller said.

"Launchpad is an ARENA program designed primarily for early-stage startups. We have heard from startups that they need a simpler and faster pathway to smaller amounts of funding that will help them reach their next technical or commercial milestone."

The program will be split evenly between startup and ecosystem funding, with $15 million allocated to each system.

The startup stream will target primarily pre-seed and seed-stage companies, with successful applicants receiving $500,000 and up a further $500,000 available for projects requiring higher capital expenditure (up to $1 million per grant).

ARENA expects the competitive funding round to support between 15 and 30 companies, with applicants required to demonstrate alignment with its strategic priorities.

The separate ecosystem stream will provide up to $5 million per grant through an open, non-competitive funding round for Australian accelerators and other organisations running multi-year programs supporting businesses aligned with ARENA's mandate.

Miller said supporting companies earlier in their development could help build a stronger pipeline of Australian clean energy technologies.

"By backing innovators early and strengthening the ecosystem around them, we can help more Australian renewable energy technologies move from a great idea to a real-world solution," he said.

Applicants for the startup stream close in late October 2026, while ecosystem funding will remain open until the available allocation is exhausted.