January 2024 - HG Ventures

January 16, 2024

INERATEC Raises $129 Million Led by Piva Capital to Usher in the Next Era of Sustainable Mobility

Investment to Accelerate the Production and Commercialization of Carbon-Neutral e-Fuel

KARLSRUHE, Germany, Jan. 16, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — INERATEC, a pioneering e-Fuel company, announced it has raised over $129 million in its Series B funding round, led by Piva Capital with additional participation from HG Ventures, TDK Ventures, Copec WIND Ventures, RockCreek, Emerald, Samsung Ventures as well as the increased support from current investors, including global corporates like ENGIE New Ventures, Safran Corporate Ventures and Honda.

The INERATEC management team: Philipp Engelkamp, Ingo Katz, Tim Boeltken and Caspar Schuchmann © INERATEC — The INERATEC management team: Philipp Engelkamp, Ingo Katz, Tim Boeltken and Caspar Schuchmann
© INERATEC

“This financing round is a major milestone for INERATEC as well as the transition from fossil fuels to sustainable e-Fuels,” said Tim Boeltken, CEO of INERATEC. “With the new capital, we are positioned to catalyze a paradigm shift in the energy sector. Our focus is to scale-up e-Fuels enabled by this new investment. By transforming 1GW of renewable energy into 125 million gallons of sustainable e-Fuel by 2030, we are taking solid steps in creating a viable alternative to fossil fuels.”

RENEWABLE ALTERNATIVES NEEDED FOR HARD-TO-ABATE SECTORS
Every year, more than 4,000 million tons of fossil crude oil are processed into fuels and chemical products. Much of the demand comes from hard-to-abate industries, such as aviation, shipping, and the chemical industry. These sectors currently rely heavily on fossil fuels and are desperately seeking renewable alternatives to achieve carbon-neutral goals. As such, the demand for ‘drop-in’ e-Fuels, or synthetic fuels for use in combustion engines that require little to no adjustments relative to existing fuel infrastructure, is expected to triple by 2030, reaching $13.6 trillion by 2050, expanding at a CAGR of 19.0% over the forecast period 2023-2050.

INERATEC’S PIONEERING TECHNOLOGY
As the world moves towards cleaner energy solutions, INERATEC is poised to lead this shift and drive the future of transportation and energy. INERATEC’s technological advancement is a scalable patented technology that enables the production of ‘drop-in’ e-Fuels. The process involves two main steps: first, turning CO₂and hydrogen into synthesis gas, then using a second reactor to turn the synthesis gas into liquid and solid hydrocarbons. The e-Fuels are compliant with standards targeted for industries heavily relying on fossil fuels, such as aviation, shipping, road transport, and the chemical industry.

Since it was founded in 2016, INERATEC has built and operated numerous pilot plants and is engaged with over 30 customers in the respective fields of application. Additionally, the company has been recognized with several key awards, including the German Founders Award, the Next Economy Award, and the EARTO Award and was recently selected as Top Innovator by UpLink, the Innovation platform of the World Economic Forum.

EXPANDING GLOBAL FOOTPRINT
The new capital will be used to start the mass production of INERATEC’s industrial-scale Power-to-X plants worldwide and advance the production of e-Fuels made from recycled CO₂ and renewable energy. Additionally, INERATEC has begun construction of its largest plant to date in Frankfurt and is expanding through international projects in the Netherlands and Chile. This expansion will yield a 1,500 x increase in production, recycling over 12,000,000 metric tons of CO₂ annually – the equivalent of what 1,125,000,000 trees would store. Beyond that, the technology will be implemented globally – wherever CO₂ and renewable energy are available.

“INERATEC’s pioneering technology is the most promising e-Fuel solution we’ve seen to date in addressing the hardest-to-decarbonize sectors such as aviation, shipping, and chemicals,” said Adzmel Adznan, Co-founding Partner at Piva Capital. “The company is doing more than just creating e-Fuels; their proprietary reactors are more efficient and scalable, re-imagining how industry can transform waste CO₂, green electrons and hydrogen to meet various needs, from fuel to power cars, planes, and ships to green chemicals for our everyday consumptions. We believe that INERATEC has the winning solution to transform industries and help the world meet its collective goal to transition away from fossil fuels for energy.”

The investment consortium for the Series B funding round consists of: Planet A Ventures, MPC, High-Tech Gründerfonds, FO Holding, Safran Corporate Ventures, Honda, ENGIE New Ventures, HG Ventures, TDK, Copec WIND Ventures, RockCreek, Emerald , Samsung Ventures, Piva Capital.

About INERATEC
INERATEC is a pioneer in the field of Power-to-Liquid applications. The company supplies sustainable e-fuels as well as chemical products. Modular chemical plants for Power-to-X and gas-to-liquid applications use hydrogen from renewable electricity and greenhouse gases such as CO₂ to produce e-kerosene, CO₂-neutral gasoline, clean diesel or synthetic waxes, methanol or SNG. Founded in 2016, INERATEC has already implemented industrial-scale power-to-liquid plants at German sites to boost the availability of sustainable fuels and chemicals in various transportation sectors, such as aviation. Further information can be found at www.ineratec.com

About Piva Capital
Piva Capital is a San Francisco-based venture capital firm investing in visionary entrepreneurs solving the world’s critical industrial challenges with breakthrough technologies and innovative business models. For more information, please visit us at Piva.vc, on LinkedIn and Medium.

Media contacts

INERATEC GmbH

Isabel Fisch

+ 49 1621852663

isabel.fisch@ineratec.de

SOURCE Piva Capital

Link to press release: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ineratec-raises-129-million-led-by-piva-capital-to-usher-in-the-next-era-of-sustainable-mobility-302034984.html

January 9, 2024

2023 in Review

As we begin 2024, HG Ventures’ Jon Schalliol looks back on a tumultuous year for venture capital and sustainability tech investment, the strategic investments the firm has made, and other highlights.

Jon Schalliol, Finance & Operations Lead at HG Ventures

2023 has been a year of mixed signals and mixed fortunes for the world of venture capital, with Pitchbook-NVCA data showing both the number and the value of investments failing to match 2022 levels, let alone the highs of 2021.

Early-stage founders in particular are finding the current environment tough. Many VC firms have become more demanding about the path to a revenue-positive position, and the data shows more investment going into later stage companies, with a reduction in relative share of investment in early-stage companies.

Sustainability-related tech is not immune to this overall market funk, although there are some indications that investment in this area have not fallen quite as fast as they have in other areas. One factor skewing this trend is the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, whose effects are only just beginning to be felt as eligible companies reap the benefits of grants, loans, tax breaks and other incentives.

At HG Ventures, while we of course feel the effects of macroeconomic changes, we are relatively insulated when it comes to the tumults of the VC market through the strength and steady leadership of The Heritage Group. This has allowed us to continue investing in new companies and support our existing portfolio in 2023.

New Portfolio Companies in 2023

We could not be more excited about the new founders and teams to join our portfolio in the past year:

SOLARCYCLE: In March, we joined Fifth Wall and others in investing in the $30M Series A funding round of SOLARCYCLE, a company focused on recycling and extracting value from end-of-life solar panels, projected to be a $2.7B market by the end of the decade. HG Ventures’, Ginger Rothrock outlined our investment rationale here.
Bind-X: In August, we were excited to participate in the €10M raise for our first investment in a German startup, the industrial biotechnology company, Bind-X. The team at Bind-X has developed a microbe-based binding technology that is able to control dust arising from construction, in a significantly more cost-effective and environmentally friendly way than existing alternatives. The technology has multiple other applications, as HG Ventures’, Nick Arnold explains.
Aclarity: The issue of PFAS removal and destruction is one on which many are working to develop solutions, and in November we were pleased to invest in Aclarity, another such company. Aclarity’s technology is a cost-effective chemical alternative to the incineration of PFAS; it centers on a proprietary anode that attracts PFAS in water and breaks down the core carbon-fluorine bond into carbon dioxide, fluorine, and hydrogen fluoride. We’ve known CEO, Julie Bliss Mullen, for a few years, and we were excited the company’s progress built to the right spot for us to join (no company is too early to connect!). Aclarity’s $15.9M Series A round was led by Aqualateral.
One More! We made one new investment in the last week of 2023 (we’re here to support even during the holidays!), and we’re excited to tell you about it shortly.

Follow-on Financings in 2023

As companies continued to drive forward in their plans, we were glad to continue our support. The following are just the announced funding rounds we supported, with several more that did not announce:

P2 Science: In February, we participated in a funding round by P2 Science, which was led by Lewis & Clark AgriFood. P2 is a green chemistry company, whose proprietary process transforms renewable forest-derived feedstocks into high-performance ingredients for use in a variety of personal care, cosmetics, and beauty products, as a sustainable alternative to petrochemical-based ingredients. We first invested in the company four years ago, when we co-led the Series C with Chanel.
Material Evolution: In May, we increased our investment in UK-based Material Evolution, as part of the company’s £15M Series A round, led by Kompas VC. Material Evolution has developed a low-carbon alternative to Portland cement, and in this post, Ginger Rothrock expands on our investment rationale, while HG Ventures’ managing director, John Glushik got hands-on with the technology when he visited the company’s facility in Britain.
Transcend: Also in August, we joined Autodesk and others in participating in the $20M Series B raise for Transcend, whose market-leading generative design software automates the conceptual and preliminary design of critical infrastructure assets, such as water treatment facilities, enabling asset owners to reduce design costs and timelines and prioritizes the incorporation of innovative and sustainable technologies. HG Ventures was one of three original investors in Transcend, and we were only too happy to renew our commitment in this funding round.
Puraffinity: The following month, in September we made a follow-on investment in London-based Puraffinity, as part of that firm’s $13.9M Series A round, led by Octopus Ventures. Puraffinity is focused on the removal of PFAS, or ‘forever chemicals’, from water. We were an early investor in the company, and I was excited to meet the team at Imperial College in London in early 2019, ahead of our investment shortly thereafter.

Other Highlights

Beyond these investments, the team has been deeply engaged in the VC and hardtech communities, seeking out new investment opportunities and fostering partnerships that add value to our portfolio companies. Highlights this year have included:

The Heritage Group Accelerator: The Heritage Group’s accelerator program is also part of the New Ventures Group at THG, and this year it welcomed a new leader, Arvind Murthy, to the already outstanding team. They brought in an exceptional cohort of visionary founders (9 companies from 5 countries!), who resided just down the hall from my office for the intensive 13-week program. The program exposed them not only to venture capital expertise, but the invaluable technical resources of Heritage Research Group and THG operating companies. I can’t wait to see what these visionary individuals go on to achieve.
Industry recognition: Our managing director, John Glushik was named by Global Corporate Venturing (GCV) as one of its “50 Emerging Leaders”, while senior director, Ginger Rothrock was recognized as one of “50 Rising Stars”. HG Ventures was also once again included in the Climate 50, an annually published list of the most recognized climate tech investors.
Innovate UK partnership: The UK has a thriving climate tech ecosystem and is home to a number of companies in which we have invested. This year we renewed our partnership with Innovate UK, the government-backed organization that makes grants and other funding available to climate-focused startups. I wrote more about our commitment to this important partnership here.
Leading the conversation around the future of roads: In November we published a report on the future of roads, and specifically the role that venture-backed technologies have to play in securing a sustainable future for this vital infrastructure. We will continue to drive the conversation around this important topic. The Future of Roads report is downloadable here.

We have also been excited to see so many of our portfolio companies achieve significant milestones in 2023, just a handful which follows:

Following our introduction, Heritage Environmental Services will be running a pilot with a number of electric vehicles from Battle Motors. This is exactly the sort of practical added value we like to deliver to our portfolio companies.
London-based supply chain traceability firm, Circulor entered into a partnership with Deloitte, unlocking enormous potential for the platform to be implemented with global companies.
Currents is a marketplace for end-of-life electric vehicle (EV) batteries and has just signed an agreement with Nissan North America to be the exclusive marketplace for its vehicles’ batteries. Check out the official announcement .
Puraffinity founder and CEO, Henrik Hagemann spoke at the United Nations Water Conference in the Spring, and writes about it here.
Carbon fiber recycling company, Vartega this year increased its production capacity tenfold, moving into a new 82,000 sq ft facility in Denver, Colorado.
ZwitterCo, whose fouling-resistant membranes make it practical and affordable to treat and reuse the world’s most challenging water, has just opened a new Innovation Center at its Massachusetts HQ. Forbes wrote about it here.
Ateios Systems, an HG Accelerator alum, landed a $2.4M Defense Department contract, to improve battery performance and production.

Looking ahead to 2024, there are many reasons to be optimistic. In spite of the challenging funding environment, we continue to see incredible innovation in materials science, chemistry, environmental solutions, industrial systems and more, from all over the world.

We will continue to back founders with the vision to develop innovative solutions to industrial scale environmental challenges, and leverage The Heritage Group’s technical and market expertise to accelerate their path to success.

January 5, 2024

Vartega Secures $10M in Equity Financing

Vartega Secures $10M in Equity Financing Led by Diamond Edge Ventures to Promote Fenix Fiber™ EasyFeed Bundles™ for Applications in Automotive, Additive Manufacturing, Consumer Electronics, and Sporting Goods

DENVER, CO — Vartega, a leading innovator in carbon fiber recycling, announced the close of its oversubscribed $10M preferred equity financing led by Diamond Edge Ventures. The investment will propel Vartega’s mission to solve the world’s toughest advanced materials recycling challenges.

Diamond Edge Ventures, the corporate venture capital arm of the Mitsubishi Chemical Group (MCG), has demonstrated confidence in Vartega’s vision to create circular supply chains for advanced materials. This funding round also included participation from Circular Innovation Fund and existing investors HG Ventures and Techstars.

Vartega’s proprietary recycling processes enable the recovery and conversion of high-performance carbon fiber used in advanced materials for aerospace components, automotive parts, and wind turbine blades. The company’s innovative approach reduces waste and provides manufacturers with a sustainable source of high-quality recycled carbon fiber via Vartega’s EasyFeed Bundles known as Fenix Fiber and Fenix Fiber+™. Fenix Fiber is a strong, stiff, and lightweight carbon fiber reinforcement for compounded thermoplastics. Fenix Fiber+ is enhanced with high-performance additives such as functionalized graphene.

“Diamond Edge Ventures investment validates our efforts to address the urgent need for sustainable solutions in the composites industry. We are grateful for their support as our lead investor for this pivotal funding round,” said Andrew Maxey, CEO of Vartega. “This capital infusion will enable us to expand our operations, enhance our technology, and further establish Vartega as a leader in the circular economy.”

The funds from this financing will be allocated to fully utilize Vartega’s new 82,000 square foot production facility and commercialize additional recycling processes to broaden feedstock availability. The company aims to continue collaborating with industry partners to integrate recycled carbon fiber into various applications, including automotive, additive manufacturing, consumer electronics, and sporting goods.

“As the world shifts towards a more sustainable future, we are excited to support Vartega in their mission to transform the materials industry,” said Curtis Schickner, President of Diamond Edge Ventures. “Vartega’s innovative approach to carbon fiber recycling aligns with our vision for investing in technologies that positively impact the environment and economically meet current and future customer needs.”

Vartega expresses gratitude to all the investors who participated in this financing and prior rounds, contributing to realizing a more sustainable future for composite materials.

For media inquiries or more information, please contact:

Adam Peterson

Marketing Specialist

adam.peterson@vartega.com

844-827-8342

About Vartega

Vartega is making carbon fiber more accessible by solving the world’s toughest advanced materials recycling challenges to create circular supply chains, decarbonize transportation, and enable a sustainable future. Vartega’s carbon fiber and specialty thermoplastics are used in sporting goods, consumer electronics, additive manufacturing, and vehicle lightweighting. Learn more at www.vartega.com.

About Diamond Edge Ventures

Diamond Edge Ventures was established in 2018 as the venture capital arm of the Mitsubishi Chemical Group (MCG). The company aims to foster innovation across the MCG Group companies through investment in and strategic partnerships with high-potential startups. For further information, visit https://www.diamondedgeventures.com or contact us at info@diamondedge.vc.

About Circular Innovation Fund

The Circular Innovation Fund (“CIF”) is a global venture capital fund focused solely on circular innovation. It is a joint venture between leading cleantech capital managers – Paris-based Demeter and Montreal-based Cycle Capital. The fund invests in growth-stage companies from North America, Europe and Asia developing breakthrough new materials, circular packaging, recycling and waste innovations, logistics, as well as eco-efficient processes & design, and circular business models. For more information on the Circular Innovation Fund, visit: www.circularinnovationfund.com.