BPCL, IIT Kanpur host MC²+ Ignite outreach to boost energy-tech innovation

New Delhi: Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) and IIT Kanpur have jointly organised an outreach event for MC²+ Ignite, bringing together more than 400 startups, researchers, students and academicians to promote deep-tech innovation and entrepreneurship in India’s energy sector.

Follow The PSUWatch Channel on WhatsApp

The event focused on the need to strengthen the pipeline for taking technologies from laboratories to pilot projects and commercial deployment. Participants were briefed on MC²+ Ignite, its focus areas and selection criteria, as well as opportunities for collaboration between energy companies, academia and startups.

BPCL Chairman and Managing Director Sanjay Khanna said the initiative is aimed at bringing together startups, academia and energy majors, combining startup-led innovation and research capabilities with industry infrastructure, pilot sites, mentorship and pathways to market.

Khanna highlighted potential areas for innovation including indigenous catalysts, hydrogen, low-carbon energy, artificial intelligence and data analytics, predictive reliability, carbon capture, crude sludge and desalter technologies, and intrinsically safe robotics for tank inspection.

A key session at the event featured a panel discussion titled “Built, Not Imported: Startups and Energy Majors Powering India’s Energy Future”, which examined the challenges of scaling deep-tech ventures from prototypes to pilots and commercial deployment. Startup founders also shared their experiences of developing solutions for complex energy-sector challenges.

The event was attended by Uttar Pradesh government officials, including Advisor to the Chief Minister Awanish Kumar Awasthi and Principal Secretary, Planning and Programme Implementation, Science and Technology, Alok Kumar, along with IIT Kanpur Director Professor Manindra Agrawal, BPCL senior officials, researchers and startup founders.

IIT Kanpur Director Professor Manindra Agrawal said a significant amount of research in Indian laboratories does not reach the market and that MC²+ seeks to address this value-realisation gap through collaboration involving eight leading energy majors.

Follow PSU Watch on LinkedIN

The event also included a technical roundtable between BPCL’s technical teams and IIT Kanpur professors to align research priorities with MC²+ Ignite’s focus areas and identify opportunities for deeper industry-academia collaboration.

MC²+ Ignite is an energy innovation accelerator focused on deep-tech startups developing solutions for critical challenges across the energy value chain. The programme supports innovations through the stages of prototype development, piloting and commercial deployment.

Applications for MC²+ Ignite are open until September 15, 2026.

(PSU Watch is India's Business News centre that places the spotlight on PSUs, Bureaucracy, Defence and Public Policy. 👉 Click to join our channel now: PSUWatch WhatsApp Channel. Prefer LinkedIn? Follow PSU Watch on LinkedIN. Click to stay connected on Twitter here and stay updated)