The International Day of Clean Energy is an annual reminder that the energy transition needs to be fast. But it also has to be fair; communities and livelihoods are at stake, and no one should be left behind.

Around the world, clean energy entrepreneurs are proving that the energy shift and social impact can go hand in hand. They are building solutions, training the next generation, and connecting technology to real needs.

Having backed over 10,000 entrepreneurs over the last two decades, we’ve seen this every day. From training local solar installers to deploying innovative cooling systems, supporting founders means helping ideas turn into tangible change that strengthens communities and powers a just, resilient clean energy future.

Here are a few examples:

1. Sunstruck Solar Solutions (Philippines)

Training the next generation of solar installers

After 22 years working on oil barges, Henry Cequina shifted to clean energy, founding Sunstruck Solar Solutions, which has installed over 7 MWp of solar power across the Philippines.

But Henry didn’t stop at deployment. He’s now partnered with New Energy Nexus Philippines’ New Energy Academy to strengthen both technical and business skills. Today, Sunstruck helps train the next generation of solar installers and entrepreneurs across the region, building local capacity while supporting the clean energy transition.

“What I saw as a big gap in Davao… is the lack of certified solar installers, and also the lack of training providers. What really made me decide to become a training partner… is to standardize installations here,” said Henry Cequina, founder of Sunstruck Solar Solutions, Inc.

By investing in skills alongside infrastructure, Sunstruck ensures the transition creates durable livelihoods rather than just megawatts.

Henry Cequina, founder of Sunstruck Solar Solutions, Inc., facilitating a New Energy Academy training session in Davao City, Philippines.

2. Volto SEA (Indonesia)

Cheaper, more efficient boat motors for fisherfolk

For fishing communities on Bungin Island, rising fuel prices and unreliable cold storage have long eaten into incomes. Volto SEA introduced electric outboard motors designed for small-scale fishers, lowering operating costs and protecting the marine environment.

“The sea is the heartbeat of life in Bungin [Island]. By replacing fossil fuel engines with electric motors, we’re not just offering innovation—we’re honoring the maritime way of life and supporting a more sustainable future,” said Yindy Kurniawan, CEO of Volto SEA.

Backed by New Energy Nexus Indonesia, Volto SEA demonstrates that clean energy can strengthen traditional livelihoods while supporting long-term resilience.

Yindy Kurniawan, CEO of Volto Sea, developed the electric outboard motor for Lelepa boats through a collaboration with New Energy Nexus. Photo by Mas Agung Wilis Yudha Bhaskoro

3. SunSawang (Thailand)

Empowering border communities with solar energy

Salinee Hurley, founder of SunSawang, has broken through the barriers faced by women entrepreneurs to deliver solar solutions to off-grid communities along the Thailand–Myanmar border.

SunSawang’s model empowers local families to adopt solar power sustainably, trains community members as technicians, and fosters long-term energy independence.

“Free installations may help in the short term, but the real goal is to empower people to access energy independently in the long run,” said Salinee Hurley, founder of SunSawang.

By centering communities and building local skills, SunSawang shows that equity and energy access go hand in hand. SunSwang is supported by New Energy Nexus Thailand through the SolarSTEP program

Salinee Hurley. Photo from SunSawang

4. Community Energy Labs (United States – California)

Optimized heating and cooling for schools and public buildings

Buildings generate roughly 40 percent of global carbon emissions. Community Energy Labs, alumni of New Energy Nexus California’s CalSEED program, helps schools and public buildings cut energy costs with “self-driving” systems that continuously optimize heating and cooling.

“Our technology takes something that feels really hard to a lot of building operators… complex, expensive, and very frustrating… and turns it into a hands-off solution. It saves time, money, and hassle,” said Tanya Barham, CEO of Community Energy Labs.

Savings can flow back into communities, showing that climate action can support social priorities while cutting emissions.

Community Energy Labs at Sonora Elementary.

Empowering entrepreneurs to lead the transition

Across sectors and geographies, these founders share a common thread: they build clean energy solutions that work for people. New Energy Nexus provides the training, mentorship, connections, and funding founders need to scale responsibly. Through accelerators, programs like the New Energy Academy, and access to global networks, we help turn bold ideas into real-world impact.

These stories show a clear lesson: the transition succeeds fastest when it is inclusive, grounded, and built with communities at its core.

Grow clean energy solutions with your community. Explore our programs and get support at join-nex.co/programs

As 2025 comes to a close, these highlights show how entrepreneurs backed by New Energy Nexus Thailand are shaping Thailand’s clean energy future, and what’s next.

NEX Thailand Gratitude Dinner

Turning climate research into real impact

Thailand’s research community is full of untapped climate innovation. Through Climate Tech Lab to Market, the country’s first climate tech commercialization program, researchers transformed decarbonization-focused research into startups ready to scale.

Over 12 weeks, the inaugural cohort engaged customers, stress-tested assumptions, refined value propositions, and connected with corporates, investors, and venture builders locally and internationally.

By the time the cohort took the stage at Demo Day, they now had market-ready solutions spanning clean energy, industrial decarbonization and carbon capture, green buildings, sustainable mobility, and circular economy. Plus, they’re now part of the New Energy Nexus portfolio with clearer commercialization pathways and stronger networks.

If this year is any indication, Thailand’s climate tech space has a ton of potential, especially as the country’s net-zero goals become more urgent. What existing and aspiring founders need is structured support to bridge the gap from idea to impact.

GBI ConNEX event

Advancing green buildings from pilots to market readiness

In 2025, the Green Building Initiative (GBI) focused on groundwork rather than scale, and that proved to be its strength. By bringing building owners, climate tech startups, and ecosystem partners into the same conversation early, GBI helped move green building solutions closer to deployment.

In its initial phase, the initiative secured commitments from three buildings to engage in upcoming pilot collaborations with startups from the NEX Thailand network. This established a clear proof-of-concept pipeline and signaled strong market readiness for green building technologies in Thailand.

Then, the first GBI ConNEX event brought public and private stakeholders together to unpack structural barriers, policy gaps, and market opportunities. Those discussions are now being shaped into practical policy recommendations to support future collaboration with government agencies and partners.

The insight here was not about speed, but alignment. When demand, technology, and policy conversations start together, climate solutions face fewer roadblocks down the line.

SolarSTEP 2025

Building a skilled workforce for Thailand’s solar future

Thailand’s energy transition will only move as fast as the people driving it. This is why our SolarSTEP program is making sure the workforce at the core of this shift is up to the challenge.

Through trainings delivered with regional partners, the program equipped solar entrepreneurs and technicians with both technical expertise and business know-how. It also reinforced a critical truth. Inclusion strengthens the energy transition.

This year, SolarSTEP also marked a major milestone: the national approval of its Solar Entrepreneurship Curriculum by the Department of Skill Development under the Ministry of Labour. This formal recognition strengthened the country’s green workforce framework and sent a clear signal that clean energy skills matter.

Our takeaway? Investing in skills, leadership, and inclusion is not optional. It is essential infrastructure for a resilient clean energy sector.

Decarbonize Thailand Symposium: Decarbonization Deep-Dive From Trends to Solutions

Connecting startups, corporates, and capital to decarbonize Thailand

This year’s Decarbonize Thailand Symposium was our biggest one yet. Over 30 climate tech startups showed up alongside corporates, investors, policymakers, and ecosystem partners, creating space for real conversations about deployment, pilots, and partnerships.

From geothermal energy and AI-powered energy management to circular battery materials, biochar, cooling technologies, and sustainable transport, the solutions on display reflected the breadth of Thailand’s innovation pipeline. The focus was not abstract net-zero goals, but practical use cases, measurable savings, and realistic pathways to scale.

While large-scale deployment is still unfolding, the symposium succeeded in its core purpose: aligning innovation with market demand and reinforcing startups’ role as key actors in Thailand’s decarbonization journey.

The NEX Gigawatt—a NEX-hosted gathering at the Bangkok Climate Action Week

Driving cross-border collaboration for climate impact

The first-ever Bangkok Climate Action Week positioned Thailand as a regional convenor for climate and clean energy collaboration – and it was an opportunity we couldn’t miss.

At three events we co-hosted and organized, we brought together entrepreneurs, investors, and leaders from across Asia to exchange insights, showcase solutions, and explore partnerships beyond borders.

For Thai founders, this mattered. Cross-border dialogue opened new pathways to scale, learn from neighboring markets, and apply solutions in diverse contexts. For both the local ecosystem and the wider region, it showcased Thailand as a hub for Asia’s clean energy transition.

What we learned this year

Looking back, 2025 was not about a single breakthrough, nor about a finished story. It was about building momentum through relationships, trust, and consistent support for entrepreneurs willing to take risks.

As Jirapat Horesaengchai, Country Manager at New Energy Nexus Thailand until October 2025, put it:

“The role of New Energy Nexus Thailand is to facilitate the whole process of different stakeholders coming together… and grow the ecosystem for clean energy entrepreneurs.”

By backing entrepreneurs with capital, skills, and connections, and by strengthening the ecosystems around them, New Energy Nexus Thailand is helping shape a cleaner, more sustainable future that benefits the country economically and ecologically. That is what we set out to do this year, and what we’ll continue to do through 2026 and beyond.

Want to be part of it? Explore our programs and stay close to opportunities shaping Thailand’s clean energy future.

The clean energy transition is our chance to build a fairer future, yet women are still missing from the table. Around the world, only 15% of clean energy leadership roles are held by women.

Even in Thailand, a leader in the Asia Pacific region when it comes to women’s leadership in the energy sector, women occupy just 23% of leadership positions.

But when women are at the helm, the impact speaks for itself.

Salinee Hurley. Photo from SunSawang

Salinee Hurley is proof that inclusive leadership powers inclusive solutions. A mechanical engineer specializing in solar, she founded SunSawang: a social enterprise bringing solar home systems and lanterns to off-grid villages along the Thailand–Myanmar border. She is also the Project Director at the Border Green Energy Team (BGET), an organization advancing clean energy access in the region.

Salinee’s journey into solar began when she pursued further studies in solar engineering in the United States. Returning to Thailand, she initially implemented solar projects through an NGO model, using grant funding to provide free installations in remote areas. Over time, she realized the approach lacked long-term sustainability.

To address this, Salinee transitioned to a social enterprise model, offering long-term payment plans that support both ongoing maintenance and local ownership.

“Free installations may help in the short term, but the real goal is to empower people to access energy independently in the long run,” she said.

Solar installation at Maw Poe Kay High School. Photo from SunSawang

SunSawang now trains and hires local technicians and sales agents to serve their own communities. This localized model not only keeps systems functioning, but also supports economic activity—access to reliable electricity allows for evening work like weaving, increasing household income.

Salinee’s work also highlights the systemic barriers that persist in Thailand’s solar landscape: high upfront costs, inconsistent regional regulations, and limited financing options for low-income households. Recent steps, including draft laws to simplify rooftop solar permitting and new green loan products, are promising, but access remains uneven.

Last year, she joined New Energy Nexus Thailand’s SolarSTEP initiative, where she shared her expertise and connected with other women leading the shift to a cleaner energy future.

Solar installation at Maw Poe Kay High School. Photo from SunSawang

Supporting women leading the way

SolarSTEP is designed to build skills and leadership among solar technicians and entrepreneurs, with a focus on women, to help accelerate Thailand’s clean energy transition.

This work is spurred on by Thailand’s ambitious target to reach 12,139 MW of solar capacity by 2037, as outlined in its Alternative Energy Development Plan (AEDP). Hitting this target will take more than policy; it requires investing in people, empowering women, and expanding access to rooftop solar across the country.

This is where SolarSTEP comes in. The program has already delivered seven trainings across Thailand’s Central, Northern, and Southern regions, reaching over 200 participants. These efforts have been strengthened through collaboration with key partners, including PEA Encom Smart Solution, PEA Encom International, and LONGi.

Photo of the SolarSTEP 2024 Training program participants, including Salinee Hurley.

Looking ahead, we’re focused on scaling impact, broadening solar access, and building a sector that mirrors the diversity of the communities it serves.

If we want a just and resilient clean energy future, we need to break down the barriers that keep women on the sidelines and back those already leading the way. Empowering more women to participate and lead in clean energy isn’t just the right thing to do—it’s the smart thing to do.

Want to be part of building an inclusive clean energy sector in Thailand? Learn more about our work here.

The Decarbonize Thailand Symposium we co-hosted with True Digital Park is one of the year’s most significant clean energy meetings in Thailand. It’s also a unique opportunity to showcase local global climate tech startups, and build partnerships with some of the country’s biggest corporations.

Now in its second year, we teamed up with Denso and Mitsubishi Thailand to focus on four arenas: e-mobility, decarbonization, agritech, and energy.

New Energy Nexus showcased over 20 startups at the symposium, with an additional 37 expressing interest from both Thailand and abroad, spanning countries like India, Japan, the Philippines, and Singapore. Here are a few of them…

Algal Bio (Japan)

Algal Bio is revolutionizing industries with their ‘Algae Biofoundry Platform’. Their tech licensing service unlocks the power of algae, identifying top strains and cultivation methods for everything from wellness to carbon neutralization.

Masahiro Kida, Team Leader for International Business Development, Algal Bio

Gideon One (Thailand)

Gideon’s platform offers complete carbon accounting and energy trading capabilities, making it easy for SMEs and non-technical users to track and trade carbon emissions. Specializing in scalable, emission tracking, and simulation digital platforms, they’re leading the way towards a greener future.

Chosen Energy (Thailand)

Chosen Digital is leading the charge in future energy innovation. Partnering with PEA, they’re pioneering the next-gen energy landscape with cutting-edge EV charging and beyond. From energy trading to virtual power plants, they’re transforming the game with plans for regional expansion.

Worapoj Ruenrerngwong, Founder & CEO, Chosen Group

Meds Venture (Singapore)

Multi Energy Decarbonized Solutions (MEDS) is unlocking sustainable energy solutions. As leaders in scalable energy modeling, they harness cutting-edge platforms, empowering businesses with actionable strategies to offset and slash carbon emissions, driving sustainable operations forward.

Alternō (Vietnam)

Alternō Air is revolutionizing green energy with sand batteries! Their Thermal Energy Storage (TES) system is changing the game, offering efficient and eco-friendly energy storage for zero-emission heating in agriculture and industry.

“For the last 20 years, we have supported 1,200 companies working in this energy and climate space across 13 different countries. Our mission is to build hundreds of companies in each country, helping our industry leaders to decarbonize their businesses.”

–Stanley Ng, Global Partnerships Director at New Energy Nexus.

Stanley Ng, Global Partnerships Director at New Energy Nexus

New Energy Nexus Thailand has supported clean energy innovators since 2017, and fostered a thriving ecosystem for startup teams dedicated to tackling rising energy demands and climate change. Our programs empower entrepreneurs to drive innovation in the clean energy sector, with corporate partnership a critical strategy to decarbonising the broader economy.

Learn more about NEX Thailand and check out our climate tech ecosystem mapping report.