Empowering Entrepreneurs in Energy: Lessons from Altira’s Success Stories

Addressing the complex challenges inherent to the energy industry and identifying value-generating opportunities in the sector requires an innovative, forward-thinking approach. There are many seemingly insurmountable problems still to resolve, which create opportunities for entrepreneurs to drive innovation when equipped with the right expertise and resources. 

With recent trends toward digitization, companies are now realizing they can more intelligently monitor their decentralized grids and invest capital into more intricate asset networks. Tools like AI and predictive analytics, the Internet of Things (IoT), and digital twins can help companies in the energy industry attain more value from their investments.

At Altira, we believe in empowering entrepreneurs to meet the modern and complex challenges of the energy industry by providing venture capital financing and a suite of service offerings. 

Below, we’ll highlight some of our success stories to demonstrate how we help companies in the energy industry commercialize transformative ideas.

The RigNet Story: Streamlined Intelligence Gathering for Distributed Assets

Altira invested in RigNet because of its unique service-based model that enables companies in the oil and gas industry to deploy their assets anywhere in the world and monitor them remotely 24/7. With access to real-time operational intelligence, oil and gas companies can make high-impact decisions much faster, increasing their potential to maximize profits.

With Altira’s financing and strategic support, RigNet raised funds through Series B, eventually adding a strategic acquisition of a land-based communications business to its portfolio.When highly respected oil and gas professional Mark Slaughter joined RigNet as CEO, Altira partnered with him on key strategic initiatives, including securing additional capital and building a world-class management team.

Altira believed in RigNet’s technology right from the start. Since Altira’s initial investment in RigNet in 2001, RigNet has grown its value from $4 million to $1 billion as a publicly traded company, with over 1,200 global onshore and offshore sites. 

Today, RigNet’s solutions are helping energy companies deploy secure, bandwidth-optimized, real-time analytics for their exploration and drilling activities, streamlining their remote operations and enabling faster expansion of mining activities.

The ThoughtTrace Story: Transforming Contract Analytics in Energy

ThoughtTrace emerged as a leader in AI-enabled contract analytics technology, specifically designed to help energy companies and legal professionals uncover decision-critical information within complex land and lease contracts—often regarded as some of the most complicated documents in the industry.

Originally focused on oil and gas contracts, ThoughtTrace evolved its proprietary software into a multi-discipline platform pre-built for various industries, including financial services, technology, healthcare, and law. This flexibility allowed the company to expand its market reach and capabilities significantly.

Altira recognized the potential in ThoughtTrace early on, leading its Series A investment and guiding the company as it scaled. Under the leadership of its CEO, ThoughtTrace developed a robust analytics platform that enabled clients to navigate complex contract landscapes more effectively. In 2023, ThoughtTrace was acquired by Thomson Reuters, marking a significant success for both the company and Altira.

A Focus on Strategic Investments 

Beyond the two stories described above, a common theme across Altira’s successful investments is their resolve to address a key pain point in the energy industry. These investments are changing the energy industry’s future by making processes more efficient and increasing the margin for profit realization.

For example, ResFrac is a cutting-edge, cloud-based platform that integrates hydraulic fracturing and reservoir simulation, enabling operators to optimize critical decisions such as well spacing, fluid volumes, and perforation designs. This powerful tool enhances operational efficiency and performance in complex shale plays, driving better economic outcomes through data-driven insights.

VC Funding and Strategic Expertise with Altira

Altira has successfully invested in multiple companies and helped them develop their ideas into significant revenue-generating ventures with a lasting impact on the energy industry. We recognize the urgency to resolve complexities in the energy industry, requiring strategic, focused, and innovative business propositions.

Our team of experts has over 27 years of experience identifying compelling value propositions and supporting these ventures through whichever financing is needed to scale and accelerate their growth. Backed by significant capital, we can help reduce time-to-market and identify opportunities for sustainable operational improvements to give start-up companies the VC support they need.

Contact us to learn more about our expertise and how we can help you!