RigUp Raises $300M To Continue Building The Next Generation Of The Energy Workforce
When evaluating sectors where job growth will be significant in the coming years, few beat oil and gas. Specifically, according to estimates by IHS markets, the oil and gas sectors will create over 2 million jobs over the next 17 years. And as the gig economy becomes an increasingly promising route for Americans workers, it is becoming impossible to ignore the prospect of providing segues for these workers to get involved in roles in the energy space, which relies heavily on highly-skilled independent contracts to complete fieldwork.
Austin-based startup, RigUp, has seen this vision through since its founding in 2014. Since inception, the company has raised over $450 million for its platform designed to connect contractors to the biggest players in the energy sector. That figure includes the company's most recent Series D, a whopping $300 million round it raised from existing investors, including Founders Fund and Bedrock Capital, as well as lead investor Andreessen Horowitz. With that investment and existing revenue streams, the company hopes to build an alternative to staffing agencies, which come with a level of rigidity that contractors accept as a result of working with them.