Micatu Secures $10 Million

HORSEHEADS, NY — Micatu, a developer of optical sensing solutions, has received a $10 million growth investment led by WAVE Equity Partners, LLC. The financing will support the company’s continued global expansion and ongoing deployment of its proprietary GridView optical sensing platform for industrial and utility grid measurement solutions.

“Our nation’s electric grid is being disrupted daily by the increasing use of renewables, and optical sensing is the best solution for averting a crisis,” said Michael Oshetski, CEO and president of Micatu. “WAVE’s investment allows us to build out Micatu’s manufacturing scale to satisfy the growing global demand of a broad range of utility customers, who need our safe, reliable, precise grid data sensors.”

“We could not be more thrilled to be joining WAVE’s portfolio of companies and take our high-fidelity performance sensing platform to the next level,” said Michael Sexton, COO and executive vice president for Micatu. “We would also like to thank England & Company, Mintz, Williams Mullen, Troutman Pepper, and Janine Ogando for their professional services and support.”

Micatu’s GridView product line provides a measurement platform that enables utilities to collect more accurate data and provide actionable insights to improve power quality and grid reliability. The optical sensors are capable of monitoring multiple voltage classes, which reduces cost and installation complexity.

Active deployments of smart grid technology are enhancing the way utilities measure complex systems such as underground networks and substations. The sensors are non-conductive, taking measurements using light passed through an optical crystal rather than passing electrons. This enables the measurement platform to replace traditional current and potential transformers while increasing crew safety, averting potential fire risk, providing more accurate and smarter management controls, and lowering capital and operational costs. With overhead, underground, and groundless options available, the sensors can be easily deployed where they are most needed to collect data and enable seamless distribution automation applications for the next generation of the grid.

“WAVE is pleased to support Micatu with growth capital,” said Mark Robinson, managing director of WAVE Equity Partners. “Having worked with the management team for more than a year and hearing applause for their unique capabilities time and again from customers, we came to appreciate their technology leadership in the market and the team’s execution capability.”