New Bedford's Orpheus Ocean lands $100K in Massachusetts climatetech push
What's the deal? Orpheus OceanDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, a New Bedford company building autonomous underwater vehicles, has received a $100,000 grant from the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC)Dealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →. The award is part of $27.2 million in tax incentives going to 18 climatetech companies across the state.
What's the endgame? Orpheus Ocean's vehicles are designed to improve seafloor monitoring and data collection. The funding is meant to help companies expand facilities, hire workers, and advance technologies that cut pollution and lower costs.
Why now? The awards mark the inaugural round of MassCEC's Climatetech Tax Incentives Program, created under the Mass Leads Act. It is tied to a 10-year roadmap for the state's climatetech sector that includes testing facilities and startup support.
By the numbers: Orpheus Ocean's $100,000 award sits near the bottom of the funding range for deals we track, in the 30th percentile by amount. Other recipients span energy storage, geothermal, clean hydrogen, fusion energy, and sustainable aviation fuel.
Governor Maura Healey said the incentives will drive growth. "These investments will help companies expand their facilities, hire more workers and grow right here in Massachusetts," she said.
MassCEC chief executive officer Ben Downing framed the awardees as evidence of the state's position. "Massachusetts is producing the solutions to the biggest challenges in climate, energy and affordability," she said.
The signal: Massachusetts is betting public money on keeping early-stage climatetech firms in-state as competition for the sector intensifies. For a small player like Orpheus Ocean, a modest grant signals official backing beyond the balance sheet.
Read more: southcoasttoday.com
Image credit: CNE CNA C6F
