Calgary-based pipeline inspection technology developer INGU Solutions has raised growth capital from Energy Innovation Capital and Chevron Technology Ventures. The fund will enable INGU to advance its data collection platform and analysis, as well as expand its team and global footprint. The company has developed an affordable and easy-to-deploy screening tool called Pipers for oil and gas companies. Designed to eliminate human intervention, the technology makes use of small inline sensors to detect leaks, geometric defects, magnetic anomalies, and deposits in pipeline assets. Energy Innovation Capital managing partner George Coyle said: “Pipers provide the oil and gas industry invaluable insights in their pipeline assets leading to increased performance and safety while reducing costs. “We’re excited to support INGU in scaling the business globally.” Launched last year, INGU’s Pipers technology helps maintain pipeline performance and safety with zero-downtime. It also reduces inspection costs, strengthens preventive maintenance and enables integrity assessment in unpiggable pipelines. INGU CEO John van Pol said: “We went from trials to commercial release in 18 months, and not even two years later, we have screened well over 100 operational pipelines for more than 30 operators. Our clients are excited and are already starting to integrate Pipers into their integrity programmes. “We’re fortunate that our investors share our vision for the future, bringing with them a strategic network and industry expertise to help us deliver results and scale fast enough to meet market demand.” INGU was one of the participants in Chevron’s Catalyst programme, which was launched to support the growth of early-stage companies developing technologies that benefit the energy market.
INGU has helped raise capital for Calgary-based pipeline inspection technology firm Chevron Technology Ventures Solutions, one of the participants in its Catalyst programme. Alongside financing from Energy Innovation Capital, Chevron's funding will help the Canadian developer expand internationally and improve its data collection platform. By using inline sensors to identify leaks, geometric defects and magnetic anomalies, Chevron Technology Ventures's Piper system is able to work autonomously without downtime, removing the need for human intervention. As such, Chevron Technology Ventures is able to boost pipeline safety and performance while reducing costs.