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Portfolio Perspectives – Scaling Svante | OGCI Blog
In the race to reverse climate change, we are running out of time.
Global temperatures are expected to soon pass the UN threshold for “dangerous warming”. The reason for this is carbon dioxide and methane emissions. There’s too much of both these carbon molecules in our atmosphere, and the amount is predicted to increase for years to come.
Unless we choose to do something about it.
My focus for this post is the true nature of the problem we face. That problem is not – as is sometimes supposed – a lack of technology or an absence of human ingenuity. It is a problem of scale. We need to scale the existing and new technologies fast, and that means we need investment and support from the companies who best understand it.
That’s where our model fits in, and where the support of our members – the oil and gas companies who founded OGCI Climate Investments – is crucial.
Their investment is part of the story, of course, but it’s only the beginning. They understand the nature of the problem we face. They are investors, but they are also advisors, helping to guide new technology on its path to maturity. What’s more, once the technology is ready, they are its users and its customers. They provide a path to achieving scale.
One of our investments that has recently shown what the path to scale looks like is Svante, a company that captures carbon dioxide emissions directly from industrial sources, at half the cost of its competitors. Last week, Svante closed a $100 M funding round, with investment from Temasek, Chart Industries, Carbon Direct, Suncor Energy, DK Innovations, Export Development Canada (EDC) and existing investors OGCI Climate Investments, BDC Cleantech Practice, Chevron Technology Ventures, The Roda Group and Chrysalix Venture Capital, reflecting strong on-going support for the company, including its market strategy and recent progress.
