CleanSpark announces two new electric vehicle contracts for subsidiary GridFabric software subscriptions

CleanSpark Inc (NASDAQ:CLSK) announced Wednesday that it has received two contracts with electric vehicle companies for the first deployments of its Plaid product sold as a software subscription.  The contracts were executed through CleanSpark's wholly-owned subsidiary GridFabric, which creates software solutions that help power utilities and IoT (Internet of Things) products that manage energy loads. Plaid specifically allows products of all types to add load shifting capabilities by translating load shifting protocols into their existing APIs. Prior to its acquisition by CleanSpark in August 2020, all of GridFabric's OpenADR solutions had been sold under a perpetual licensing agreement, which represented a one-time sale. One of the stated goals at the time of acquisition for CleanSpark was to transition to a new cloud-based subscription option for the software which will generate long-term, recurring revenue. READ: CleanSpark reports fourth consecutive year of record-breaking annualized revenues, reaffirms 2021 gross revenue target The benefits of transitioning to a SaaS (software-as-a-service) model include improvements to the platform and implementing services, ease of maintenance, and enhanced cyber-security measures. Additionally, new features are being added that were previously only enabled with on-site updates or re-installation. "GridFabric specializes in providing communication protocols to cleantech energy and EV companies, enabling them to participate in wholesale markets and communicate directly with utilities,” said Zach Bradford, CEO of CleanSpark, in a statement. “Large, up-front fees for the protocols and communications certification process can be prohibitive for some companies. Under a subscription or SaaS model the customer is able to make ongoing monthly payments rather than a large lump sum. We expect this structure to attract more customers thereby creating an even stronger reoccurring revenue base. Reducing the cost of entry into OpenADR certification should also accelerate market growth as a whole and increase pull-through demand for CleanSpark's full suite of products industry-wide." Bradford added: "We intend to further enhance the SaaS offerings by developing a platform that will host the existing 'Plaid' and 'Canvas' products along with future product releases, such as protocols for IEEE 2030.5 within a single ecosystem. These improvements will enhance a user's ability to more rapidly integrate new protocols without needing to shift platforms. The monthly fees will also enable GridFabric and CleanSpark to rely on long-term subscription-based revenues to support new feature developments and platform expansion as a whole. SaaS is about ease of use and functionality, and we are excited to be able to offer this as an option to a larger number of potential customers." Contact the author: patrick@proactiveinvestors.com Follow him on Twitter @PatrickMGraham