At Vivatech (Paris), Carbon8, the UK clean technology company specialising in carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS), announce the closure of a GBP5m funding round. Vicat, the international cement group, EDF Group and its corporate venture capital arm, EDF Pulse Ventures, have co-invested GBP4m in Carbon8.
John Pilkington, CEO of Carbon8, said: “Vicat Group and EDF Group share Carbon8’s vision of pioneering cleantech solutions for heavy industry and helping industry achieve their Net Zero ambitions. The investment made by EDF and Vicat is hugely valuable as we accelerate the growth of our business, and maximise the positive impacts – capturing carbon, re-using residues – that we can offer to industry. We are delighted to have the support of these two major companies, and the continued backing of our other investors.”
Laury Barnes-Davin, scientific and R&D director of Vicat Group, said: “Under our commitment to limiting our environmental impact, Vicat has looked at a number of innovative ideas for reducing its carbon emissions. We were drawn to Carbon8’s two-part technology: capturing the CO₂ that Montalieu emits, and using it to produce an aggregate that can be marketed in the construction industry. It opens up great potential for our operations not just in France but also in all the countries where we work across the globe.”
Julien Villeret, chief innovation officer (EDF Group), said: “The development of CO2 sequestration is key to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. The solution developed by Carbon8 enables our industrial customers to accelerate decarbonisation rapidly while integrating themselves into a circular economy logic. This investment is fully consistent with the raison d’être of EDF Group, which aims to build a carbon neutral world.”
Carbon8, originally a spin-out from the University of Greenwich (London), has developed and commercialised a technology to help hard-to-abate industrial sectors decarbonise, and shift these industries to a more circular operation by converting their residues into assets for commercial use. Carbon8’s CCUS Accelerated Carbonation Technology is designed to help industries like cement, energy from waste, steel and paper, achieve their net zero targets. These industries are currently responsible for over 20 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to the International Energy Association.
