AVE’s first edition selects 21 startups (ANP Entrepreneurship Program) | Brazil | Upcoming Energies

NAVE - the ANP Entrepreneurship Program - completed its first edition by selecting 21 startups to develop projects designed to transform the energy sector. The selection followed a broad pipeline: 331 applications, 261 validated proposals, and participation from 204 companies, culminating in 21 startup-led initiatives connected to 19 mapped challenges. 

The program’s ambition is also visible in scale and governance: it was backed by a significant investment envelope (publicly referenced in the tens of millions of reais) and brought together a coalition of large companies - such as Petrobras, Shell, Equinor, and TotalEnergies - plus research and innovation institutions, reflecting a deliberate ecosystem-building approach rather than isolated innovation. 

Challenge themes span areas with direct decarbonization and operational relevance - such as emissions monitoring and control, energy generation from waste, reliability and maintenance, and other industrial priorities - creating a structured pathway for startups to test solutions in a real industry context. For corporate participants, NAVE operates as a portfolio of applied experiments: a way to de-risk emerging technologies while accelerating time-to-impact in Brazil’s energy transition.