Energy Giant Engie Backs 'Blockchain Studio' With $2.3 Million Funding

French energy company Engie and business consulting group Maltem are launching a new blockchain development spinoff for commercial clients, the companies announced Friday.

Dubbed Blockchain Studio, the new venture will target clients in Asia and Southern Europe, Engie said in a press release. Its first product is a software suite that "accelerates and industrializes the implementation of blockchain projects."

"Most blockchain projects stagnate at the 'proof of concept' stage and this technology still remains the domain of experts and specialists," the company said in its release.

The tools will help in developing smart contracts, "making it accessible to users with no technical knowledge," as well as managing "the establishment of blockchain infrastructure accessible in the cloud or directly on the company's server."

The startup secured 1.9 million euros (roughly $2.3 million) in seed funding. The team now includes 10 people and is going to grow up to 25 by the end of 2019, Engie said. The company also plans to open a branch in Singapore sometime next year.

Last March, Engie joined a group of energy companies and Grid Singularity, a Vienna-based blockchain startup, in the Energy Web Foundation (EWF) aiming to foster blockchain projects in the energy sector for commercial deployment.

In July, Engie's corporate research center, Engie Lab CRIGEN, through its Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab, signed a Memorandum of Understanding with The IOTA Foundation to explore test the possible use of blockchain in energy management, smart cities, smart buildings and mobility.

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