Altiro Energy

Motivated by the upside of clean fuel and a circular business model, a Montreal-based group of engineers was driven to provide solutions for sustainability. They developed a technology featuring an iron-based fuel, which is versatile and renewable. Now all they needed to do was bring the innovation to market, but that turned out to be another challenge altogether. 

“We realized we wanted to get it out to the world and make an impact — and that being a university researcher is not the way to do that,” says Samson Bowen-Bronet. “That gets you the first step — the breakthrough idea or the breakthrough technology — but to make an impact on the world and other people’s lives, you’ve got to start a company and do it yourself. We were very strongly pulled by that … to really make a difference and have this technology see the light.” 

So Bowen-Bronet, Martin Aralov, Nic Pinkerton and Dr. Jeff Bergthorson, PhD, founded Altiro Energy, incorporating in December 2022. Having tested the proof of concept, the co-founders are creating a pilot system for their unique product. Safe, stable and non-toxic, it has multiple applications. 

“Altiro’s new carbon-free fuel can be used for energy storage and distribution with wind and solar power, for industrial heating processes or combined heat and power in remote locations,” says Bowen-Bronet. “It can be part of a big paradigm shift by allowing for more renewables, by bringing clean energy to the industry and geographies where it’s needed most.” 

For a zero-emissions fuel company, an association with UCeed made certain sense. “Well-placed,” according to Bowen-Bronet, “being in Alberta, being in the energy sector.” Altiro is also participating in the 2023-24 cohort of the Creative Destruction Lab-Rockies at UCalgary. 

Visit Altiro’s website for more information. 

Altiro Energy has received investment from UCeed, a venture philanthropy fund accelerating UCalgary and community-based startup companies to advance problem-solving research, create jobs and fuel the economy. A key program in the UCalgary innovation ecosystem, UCeed bridges the gap between innovation, demonstration and commercialization, and is managed by UCalgary’s knowledge-transfer and business incubator, Innovate Calgary. 

UCeed Energy Fund is made possible through the philanthropic support of Calgary entrepreneur and community leader Don Archibald, with additional philanthropic support from the Tamaratt Fund at the Calgary Foundation, and funding from UCalgary’s Global Research Initiative.