Origami has signed a 20-year Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) partnership with business energy generation and storage company Ylem Energy (Ylem).
The deal will see Ylem’s current and future portfolio of low carbon, on-site generation and energy storage assets integrated into Origami’s data platform for the next two decades.
Ian Gadsby, managing director of Ylem Energy, said the company’s asset base has become significantly more diverse and flexible, and as such the company must also invest in a digital infrastructure that allows it to take advantage of evolving market opportunities.
“The Origami partnership gives us a powerful software ‘engine’ that we can rely on to keep us at the front of the digital curve, while also allowing us to pursue our own digital innovation built on top of the Origami platform.”
The shift to longer term SaaS contracts – up from around five to seven years currently – to match the lifetime of assets marks a significant shift in the value of real-time data for firms, said Origami. Software is now a fundamental enabler of the versatility and flexibility, which is needed to play into the dynamic energy markets.
“Real-time data is the key to navigating the volatility of today’s power and energy markets, which means software has become king,” said Peter Bance, CEO of Origami.
“Agility has become far more valuable than perfect foresight in the energy transition. Long-term independent SaaS partnerships enable that agility, meaning risks can be managed and opportunities maximised. This is how tomorrow’s market will operate.”
The deal follows Origami partnering with Gresham House Energy Storage Fund and Habitat Energy for the operation of 50MW of battery energy storage systems in April 2022. While last year, the company raised £20.5 million to drive its next phase of growth.
Origami’s strategic account and innovation director David Middleton recently spoke as part of a webinar on the growth of flexibility in the energy system for the Energy Networks Association, hosted by Current±. You can watch the session in full, here.
