Virridy, a developer of technologies for managing and monitoring water, agricultural and energy resources, has raised USD 5.5 million in Series A funding. The funding round was led by Accord Capital, with existing investors including FHI 360, Cleo Capital, Reverent Rock, Save Earth and VertueLab also participating. Virridy is now set to expand its offering across Africa and North America. As a result, the start-up says it will accelerate the development of “satellite-connected sensors for managing water, energy, and agricultural resources.”
“In Kenya and Ethiopia, Virridy’s low-cost, satellite-linked sensors monitor water boreholes, enabling government agencies responsible for maintenance to effectively deploy resources to minimize borehole downtime to ensure communities have consistent access to well water for livestock and crops,” says the company in a media release. Virridy’s technologies are also in use in Uganda, Rwanda, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone.
Virridy Founder and CEO, Dr Evan Thomas stated that they are “excited that Virridy is enabling environmental markets, including carbon credits, energy incentives and water permitting through our sensors and analytics”. He noted that his “team was the first to bring to market carbon financing for water treatment 15 years ago and are now supporting these markets at scale for water access and conservation, soil carbon, and energy conservation,”
“Accord is excited to partner with Virridy to support its continued growth and innovation,” noted Chris Lackner, managing director at Accord Capital. “We believe the management team’s significant collective backgrounds will enable Virridy to become the leading sensor and data provider in environmental resource monitoring.”
The company noted that its technologies reduce water-supply breaks and guarantee continuous supply to more than 4 million people by providing critical information on usage and availability. Virridy is doing this in partnership with the National Science Foundation, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the World Bank, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Millennium Water Alliance, and Swarm Technologies, among others.
