#29: Sea6 Energy with Sowmya Balendiran – The Evolution Of Mechanised Ocean Farming, Enhancing Productivity, Navigating Logistic Challenges And Regulatory Hurdles, Market Expansion and Local Impact.

Inside Seaweed

Sowmya Balendiran is Co-Founder & Chief Business Officer at Sea6 Energy, a pioneer of innovative technologies for sustainable, large-scale and mechanised ocean farming. Sea6 Energy was founded at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras with a vision to develop disruptive solutions to global problems. Sowmya has more than 10 years of executive-level experience in product development, marketing, sales and strategy. She has featured in ‘Top 50 Women in Biotech’ in India as well as in Forbes India’s ’30 under 30’ 2018 special mention in the ‘Science and Green Tech’ category and featured in women pushing boundaries by GP-ORF. Sowmya holds a degree in Biotechnology and an executive program at IIM Calcutta.
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Timestamps:

00:00:00 - Intro
00:01:24 - The “Why” Behind Sea6 Energy
00:02:44 - Challenges with Land Use for Biofuels
00:06:00 - How Being Based Played a Role India
00:07:21 - Changes in Perspective Over Time
00:09:12 - Key Milestones and Wins
00:10:43 - Current State and Future Goals
00:11:32 - Timeline for Biomaterials
00:13:19 - Balancing Farmer Income and Consumer Costs
00:14:45 - Mechanisation and Productivity
00:16:23 - Logistics Challenges in Seaweed Farming
00:18:12 - Lessons Learned in Mechanisation
00:19:23 - Regulatory and Market Acceptance Challenges
00:21:41 - Regulatory Hurdles in Biostimulants
00:23:10 - Evolution of Mechanisation
00:27:16 - Ownership Models for Mechanisation Tools
00:30:08 - Expansion to Indonesia and Focus on Tropical Seaweeds
00:34:33 - Limited Research on Tropical Seaweeds
00:37:02 - Exciting New Applications and Products
00:39:08 - Importance of Site Selection
00:40:57 - Positive Local Impact in Indonesia
00:43:52 - Increasing Productivity
00:45:17 - Concerns About Mechanisation and Job Loss
00:47:30 - What Not To Learn About Agriculture
00:49:10 - The Link Developing Between Ocean Farming and Land Farming
00:50:12 - Funding And Investments: The Gap Between West and East
00:54:00 - What the West Is Misunderstanding and Underestimating
00:56:18 - The Best and Worst Advice for Algae Entrepreneurs
00:58:57 - Sowmya Biggest Frustration in The Industry
01:01:12 - How to Get In Touch With Sowmya and Sea6

Useful Links:

Sowmya Balendiran on LinkedIn.
Sea6 Energy: Website, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, X and YouTube.
Potato Impact Partners: Website, LinkedIn and Instagram

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