The single greatest, yet often overlooked, challenge in the energy sector today is the outdated and increasingly inadequate traditional wires-based energy grid. Designed for centralised, one-way power flow, it creates a critical bottleneck that is growing wider every day. It simply isn’t flexible, agile, or resilient enough to support the massive energy demands of global electrification, the intermittency of renewables, or to get us to Net Zero and true energy security.

PowerUp directly addresses this challenge by providing a decentralised, dynamic Energy-as-a-Service (EaaS) solution that bypasses this grid bottleneck. Our Battery-based Energy Distribution (BEDS) system, with its network of hot-swappable batteries intelligently managed by AI, acts as a ‘Virtual Wire’ network. This innovative approach fundamentally changes how kWhs are moved, ensuring energy is available precisely at the point of use, when and where it’s required, without relying on complex, costly, and slow grid upgrades. PowerUp’s intelligence, embedded via a harmonics processor and AI, recognises connected equipment and precisely analyses power consumption, enabling us to accurately predict when batteries will run out of charge and plan just-in-time swaps.

At the heart of this system are MEP’s smaller, modular 2kWh batteries. Designed to be the electric version of the fossil fuel jerry can, these highly versatile packs enable direct power for everything from 2 and 3-wheelers to heavy construction equipment like cement mixers, tractors, diggers, road breakers, road saws, and pumping stations, as well as providing backup power.

This disruptive EaaS model is being put into action through the ZEBRAS project. This live demonstration focuses on directly displacing fossil fuel generators, proving a pragmatic, cost-effective path to decarbonisation. As one of six new ZE-Gen Demonstrator projects, ZEBRAS is supported by Innovate UK on behalf of the UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, reinforcing its role in a global initiative to end reliance on polluting fossil fuel generators. By offering a readily available and mobile energy supply, ZEBRAS empowers communities, accelerates the electrification of transport and non-road machinery, and bypasses the constraints of static infrastructure, even in areas considered well-served by the grid.