Australian Tesla pioneer and flow battery technology enrtrepreneur Simon Hackett has become the anchor shareholder in the Fully Charge Show as the project launched by Robert Llewellyn 13 years ago embarks on a new crowd funding campaign.
Fully Charged has become a leading voice on the future of energy and transport. After the success of the YouTube channel, which now has over a million subscribers, five years ago Llewellyn started Fully Charged Live exhibitions which have been held in the UK, US and for the first time in Australia earlier this year.
The organisation is now looking to grow its events, rebranding as Everything Electric from 2024. To enable its growth, the Fully Charged Show is looking to raise £1 – £1.5m ($A1.9 – $A2.9 million) and has been talking to direct investors ahead of a crowdfunding campaign which will be launched soon.
In a press release Fully Charged Live has announced Australian Australian tech entrepreneur and long-term EV advocate Hackett – one of the first in Australia to import the Tesla Roadster – as the show’s anchor investor.
Hackett, co-founder of Internode Pty Ltd, is also the largest investor in sustainable energy storage manufacturer, Redflow, which is producing zinc-bromine flow battery technology.
Hackett also set up The Hackett Foundation which undertakes targeted philanthropy work, most notably including the presenting sponsorship of WOMADelaide.
Founder Llewellyn and CEO Dan Caesar have invited Hackett to be a non-executive director of the Fully Charged Show Ltd.
“Recent years have been an incredibly enjoyable journey for myself, Dan and the team, but it is even better when we are joined by like-minded people, and as such we are delighted to have Simon on board,” said Llewellyn in a press release.
Hackett is also excited about the next chapter for the world’s largest EV and home electrification show.
“I’ve known and worked with Robert for over a decade. I am deeply motivated to take actions in my own life that can enhance society’s capacity to transition from conventional energy sources to renewable electricity generation,” said Hackett.
“I also love investing in, and deploying, technologies that use that renewable energy to great advantage to get things done.
“This leads, naturally, to investments in non-lithium batteries, to driving EVs (and extolling the virtues of driving them), to deploying renewable energy systems in every home and office I have anything to do with, and to wanting to show all of this to others, to help them to understand how well it all works in the real world.
Fully Charged says the direct investment round will conclude on Friday, July 14. It says its previous crowdfunding campaign concluded in a few hours. Details of the crowdfunding campaign will be announced in the near future and that people who are interested in investing can register their interest online.
Daniel Bleakley is a clean technology researcher and advocate with a background in engineering and business. He has a strong interest in electric vehicles, renewable energy, manufacturing and public policy.