Written by How the NatWest Clean Transport Accelerator is supporting businesses developing the next generation of transport
Introduction from NatWest
Transport is one of the biggest greenhouse gas emitters in the UK. According to UK government research, in 2021 transport was responsible for 26% of greenhouse gas emissions in the UK, almost all through carbon dioxide emissions.
Cutting emissions in the sector is vital to meeting UK targets for tackling climate change and could also bring benefits for health and wellbeing, as well as opportunities for economic growth.
But how are we going to get there? Despite a blip during the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of vehicles on our roads continues to rise, while new fuel technologies that could make air travel more sustainable are still in the early stages of development.
‘Transport needs to clean up and become a very different thing to what it is today,’ says Richard Hill, Head of Automotive and Manufacturing at NatWest Group. ‘The sector is going through a revolution. It’s going to form a key part of the transition support journey and the UK has a big opportunity to be a leader in clean transport.’
We’re bringing people together to build a network of entrepreneurs
We spoke to Radovan Gallo, from Flux Aviation, about the support he gained from our Clean Transport Accelerator. Watch the interview below:
Meet the other entrepreneurs from the Clean Transport Accelerator programme here
If you would like to know more about the support we offer visit our Clean Transport pages here
Read the interview below:
My name is Radovan Gallo, I’m the founder and CEO of Flux Aviation – we are on a mission to electrify the aerospace sector.
The emissions from aviation are projected to spike up, while all the other industries are decarbonising on their journey to Net Zero. By flying on battery power, we can save about 50% of operating cost of these aircraft, that means you’re saving on fuel, but you’re also saving on maintenance because mechanically these power trains are simpler, so there’s fewer things to break and maintain – So not only do you get savings, because you don’t have to go to the maintenance shop all the time, but also you get higher reliability as a result of that.
This year we raised our first round of investment, back in March – So that basically has allowed us to move into our own premises, where we are today, also it has allowed us to start growing the team, recruit people full time, and just in general, hit the accelerator pedal in all the different aspects of the business.
We’ve been part of the Clean Transport Accelerator, that was run by NatWest and WMG on campus – the main motivation for me to apply was because I’m a first-time founder, I’m learning about the business side of things, learning about marketing, fundraising, leadership. Things like that, and this was a perfect opportunity to basically get support in all those areas that I was missing and needed to develop further, that was my expectation going in, but also that’s what happened.
There was a good program, a great selection of different topics, different lecture type sessions. Also group acceleration and one-on-one mentorship, that basically helped me close those skills gaps over time.
Probably the most valuable thing, by going through the Clean Transport Accelerator was the group of entrepreneurs and the community that was built around the program. Being able to bounce ideas with other people going through similar issues and similar struggles with their own start-ups. Because it was a mixture of companies at various stages, being able to work with people that are further along the journey and see what’s coming up on the horizon and learn from the sort of experience, and their mistakes before repeating them myself.
If you are struggling with clarity and finding the path forward, and maybe even crystallising your idea – I would say that’s a perfect time to apply for the accelerator – With the support of your mentor and also the other entrepreneurs in the group, you’ll get that clarity, you’ll be able to formulate your idea much more clearly, you’ll be able to validate it against what does the market actually want, who are your customers and basically find a path that you can go down – and go down the path confidently.
Meet the other entrepreneurs from the Clean Transport Accelerator programme here
If you would like to know more about the support we offer visit our Clean Transport pages here