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Hill Dickinson advises Praetura Ventures on SteamaCo investment

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Hill Dickinson has advised Manchester venture capital company Praetura Ventures on an investment in SteamaCo, a UK-based smart metering technology supplier to utilities in Africa and Asia. 

The US $5 million Series B refinancing deal, which Praetura co-led with global energy company Shell, will support SteamaCo’s continued technology development and growth, enabling reliable electricity services for hundreds of thousands of people across 10 underdeveloped countries.

David Foreman, managing director at Praetura Ventures, said: ‘We are very impressed with [SteamaCo’s] strategy and the unique capabilities of their product. We are pleased to announce SteamaCo among the initial investments from our first £15 million enterprise investment scheme fund. We are excited to work with both SteamaCo and Shell to support the business as it continues to grow.’

Harrison Leaf, CEO and co-founder at SteamaCo, said: ‘We are delighted to welcome Praetura and honoured to have continued participation from existing shareholders. Automation is a key part of the historic privatisation of utilities in Africa and Asia. Tens of thousands of times each day, our product processes tariffs, monitors grid health and helps technicians, agents and consumers seamlessly go about their daily business. It is hugely motivating to everyone at SteamaCo that our work helps bring electricity to those who have never had it.’

SteamaCo’s smart metering technology and cloud software runs on less than 100 KB of  communications data per meter per month. This is one hundred times more efficient than comparable services and enables utilities to operate in previously unreachable locations. The potential market for such technologies is vast, with a recent World Bank report estimating that mini grids could provide electricity for up to 500 million people by 2030. 

Hill Dickinson corporate partner Matt Noon, who led on advising Praetura Ventures, assisted by associate Katy Oakes, said: ‘It was great to advise Praetura on this key investment into a very exciting North West based business. The Praetura, Shell and SteamaCo combined offering should mean exciting times ahead for the business.’

Praetura investment director Peter Carway thanked Hill Dickinson saying: ‘We would like to extend our thanks to Matt Noon and Katy Oakes for all their help and support during the completion of this investment. Excellent work as always’.
 

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