Open Innovation as a Driver of the Energy Transition

The energy transition is far more than a concept increasingly present in public debate: it is a race against time.

The energy sector faces the enormous challenge of reducing emissions while ensuring supply in a sustainable way. In this scenario, open innovation has evolved from being an option to becoming the indispensable catalyst to accelerate change.

At Moeve, our vision is clear: the energy of the future cannot be built in isolation. Collaboration with startups, research centers, and other ecosystem players is key to advancing faster and more efficiently toward our purpose: leading the energy transition through green molecules, sustainable mobility, and environmentally responsible chemistry.

For decades, large corporations relied on their internal capacity to innovate. Today’s landscape demands a new formula: startups bring agility and fresh perspectives, while established corporations provide experience, resources, and infrastructure. By connecting both worlds, synergies accelerate progress. That is why at Moeve we have embraced an open innovation model that connects diverse talent with our strategic challenges, transforming ideas into scalable projects with a direct impact on decarbonization.

Moeve Light Up: driving sustainability

To bring this vision to life, we created Moeve Light Up, our pioneering open innovation program.

This initiative was designed to address specific challenges defined by our business areas, such as large-scale green hydrogen production or the development of new molecules from captured CO₂. At the first Selection Day, held last June, we selected ten startups that are already working hand in hand with our teams and the scientific experts at Moeve’s Innovation Center in Alcalá de Henares (Madrid).

Moeve Light Up is not just a showcase of innovation—it is a space for transformative collaboration across the sector.

Disruptive technologies

The energy future is being shaped by new technologies that combine scientific rigor, sustainability, and scalability. At Moeve, we have identified several areas that play a particularly critical role in this transition, guiding our collaborations and bringing us step by step closer to the decarbonization goals set for 2030 through our Positive Motion strategy. These priority areas include:

• Advanced green hydrogen storage, essential to make it viable and competitive.
• CO₂ capture and valorization, turning waste into a resource.
• Innovative and sustainable materials, improving processes and reducing environmental footprint.
• Smart digital solutions, optimizing energy production and consumption.

Immaterial: a success story

Even before launching Moeve Light Up, we had already seen the potential of open innovation. A clear example is our collaboration with Immaterial, a spin-off from the University of Cambridge.

Led by Spanish scientist David Fairén-Jiménez, Immaterial develops metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), a revolutionary material that enables greener, more efficient hydrogen storage.

To understand their potential: MOFs require less energy for storage compared to compressed hydrogen, offer high storage capacity at lower pressures, and reduce both safety risks and costs associated with high-pressure systems.

Thanks to this alliance between Immaterial and our Innovation Center, we are now working together to build a full-scale plant to produce these materials.

This case is inspiring because it reflects exactly what we seek: partnerships that go beyond pilot testing and evolve into strategic collaborations with real impact across the industry.

The method: from idea to impact

Effective collaboration does not happen by chance; it requires a clear method that combines challenge definition, talent selection, mentoring, collaboration, and the development of scalable pilots. It is not only about having good ideas, but about implementing them together—aligning the agility of startups with our strategic needs and the sector’s demands.

This is how shared effort translates into tangible results. The energy transition is far too complex to be tackled in isolation.

It requires a global ecosystem where corporations, startups, universities, and investors work in coordination. With Moeve Light Up, we aim to be an active player in that ecosystem, because open innovation is not just a tool—it is the mindset we need to transform the future of energy.

An invitation to build the future

At Moeve, we are convinced that open innovation is the most effective path to accelerate the energy transition, generate positive impact, and unlock new opportunities for all. Our experience with Immaterial inspires us, Moeve Light Up drives us, and the partnerships yet to come motivate us to keep opening our doors to talent and new ideas.

The challenge of the energy transition is immense—but so are the opportunities that arise when we choose to face it together.