Singapore-based Blue Whale Energy, a company providing a battery-powered virtual power plant (VPP), has raised US$2 million in a seed funding round, led by Forge Ventures.
Monk’s Hill Ventures, UntroD Capital Asia, Yamada Shokai, and several angel investors participated.
Also Read: How NEU Battery Materials is powering the circular economy for lithium
The company has also been accepted into the Energy Market Authority’s (EMA) VPP regulatory sandbox. This two-year initiative is designed to test how distributed energy resources can strengthen Singapore’s electricity grid.
Blue Whale Energy was founded by serial entrepreneur Gabriel Lim, whose previous venture, Y Combinator-backed AI startup Saleswhale, was acquired by Silicon Valley unicorn 6sense.
Blue Whale Energy focuses on developing and operating distributed battery systems tailored for commercial and industrial (C&I) customers. At the heart of the VPP are modular sodium-ion battery packs, which the company claims are a safer and more sustainable alternative to traditional lithium-ion systems. These assets are orchestrated by the company’s proprietary energy management system (EMS) and market integration software.
This vertically integrated structure enables the fleet of batteries to operate as a VPP. The system’s core function is to optimise charging, discharging, and market participation in real time, thereby supporting grid stability and accelerating the adoption of renewable energy.
Blue Whale Energy currently holds an EMA wholesale electricity licence and market participant registration. It is building a software platform designed for automated dispatch, market bidding, and asset performance management, which is underpinned by its growing network of distributed batteries.
The firm has already deployed 0.8 MWh of capacity and reports strong customer interest, with more than 20 MWh in its active pipeline within the last few months.
CEO Lim commented: “Battery energy storage has long been too expensive, complex, and difficult to monetise. Blue Whale’s vertically integrated approach changes that. By owning our hardware, software, and market layers end-to-end, we make storage simple, safe, and profitable–enabling customers to double the IRR of their solar installations.”
Also Read: Can Malaysia build a home-grown battery industry?
Tiang Lim Foo, co-founder and partner at Forge Ventures, said: “The energy transition is creating once-in-a-generation infrastructure opportunities, and Singapore as one of the most energy-progressive economies globally is at the forefront. Gabriel has a proven track record of building category-defining products, and we believe Blue Whale’s VPP platform addresses exactly what the grid needs: innovative solutions that manage stability while accelerating renewable adoption.”
The post Blue Whale Energy nets US$2M to power Singapore’s first battery-based virtual power plant appeared first on e27.