Sustainability management solutions provider Optera announced that it has raised $12 million, with proceeds aimed at enabling the company to expand its carbon accounting solutions and services to more mid-market and enterprise companies.

Founded in 2006 as a boutique corporate sustainability consulting firm, the Boulder, Colorado-based Optera provides sustainability management software enabling companies to accurately measure and manage Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions, and providing actionable insights and forecasts, and tools to collaborate with supply chain and investment partners.

The financing follows significant expansion by the company, which grew its team by more than 250% and quadrupled its number of customers last year. Optera’s platform already tracks emissions associated with more than $180 billion in supply chain spend. Optera said that the proceeds from the financing will be used to accelerate product innovation and to grow its sales and marketing teams to reach a global scale.

Tim Weiss, co-founder and CEO of Optera, said:

“The biggest businesses around the globe are actively transitioning to the low-carbon economy. It is no longer a question of whether this transition will happen but whether it will happen quickly enough. Optera’s platform enables global companies to quantify and manage their biggest sources of emissions with greater accuracy, confidence, and actionability.”

The Series A funding round was led by Next Frontier Capital and participation from Blackhorn Ventures, Mucker Capital, Overture, Engage, Massive, SaaS Ventures, Valo Ventures, AngelList, and Stout Street Capital.

Kirsten Suddath, General Partner at Next Frontier Capital, said:

“Optera is driving innovation and change in ESG, making it easier for corporations to manage their decarbonization journey more effectively – especially across their value chains. By making emissions data actionable, Optera is instilling confidence in its customers that they can report accurately and make progress towards net-zero initiatives. We see tremendous value in Optera’s solutions, which is why we have increased our investment and will continue to be a partner in their future growth.”

Truck, bus and construction equipment company Volvo Group announced today a new agreement with Swedish startup H2 Green Steel to purchase low-carbon steel for use in its commercial vehicles, with deliveries beginning in 2026.

Steelmaking is one of the biggest emitters of CO2 globally, and one of the more challenging sectors to abate, with total greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from the sector accounting for 7% – 9% of direct emissions from the global use of fossil fuels.

Founded in 2020, H2 Green Steel is developing its flagship green steel plant in Boden, Sweden, with the project including a giga-scale green hydrogen plant as an integrated part of the steel production facility. The company employs hydrogen produced using green power to remove the oxygen from iron oxide, avoiding most of the CO2 emissions normally produced, and uses electricity from 100% renewable sources for the energy requirements generated in the manufacturing process. H2 Green Steel aims to begin production in 2025, with plans to produce 5 million tons of nearly fossil-free steel by 2030.

The deal follows last week’s announcement by H2 Green Steel that it raised €1.5 billion in equity to finance the new plant’s construction.

Volvo is the latest in a series of automotive sector buyers of H2 Green Steel, with recent agreement also including Scania, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW.

Henrik Henriksson, H2 Green Steel’s CEO, said:

“The commercial vehicle industry has actively been driving the demand for green steel, validating the market interest. When an undeniable large player like Volvo Group, working at the forefront of sustainable change, places a customer order it’s a clear sign of confidence in both our company and our product.”

According to Volvo Group, the announcement will support the company’s goal to achieve a net zero GHG emission value chain by 2040, a target set by the company in 2021. The company has also sourced fossil-free steel through its collaboration with steel manufacturer SSAB.

Andrea Fuder, Chief Purchasing Officer of Volvo Group, said:

“Collaborations which support our work to reduce emissions are crucial on the path towards net zero. Steel is a big contributor to the footprint of our products, and working together with both established and new players for developing decarbonized materials is key to advancing our progress in sustainable transport and infrastructure solutions.”

Snacking, food, and pet care products provider Mars announced today a series of new climate-related goals, including a target to cut carbon emissions across its full value chain in half by 2030, and to invest over $1 billion over the next three years to drive climate action.

The new commitments were unveiled as part of Mars’ newly released Net Zero Roadmap, outlining the company’s action plan to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions across its full value chain, a goal set by the company in 2021.

Mars CEO Poul Weihrauch said:

“2050 can seem to be in the distant future, but the progress we make in the next seven years is critical. My generation of CEOs has the ability and responsibility to deliver actual emission reductions and put business on a clear path to Net Zero by 2050. That’s why Mars is committed to delivering a 50% reduction in GHG by 2030. We cannot wait for the economy to improve; we must push forward with investments that protect our business today and in the future.”

The company outlined several of the initiatives and focus areas it will pursue to achieve its net zero goals, including transitioning to renewable energy – including addressing the energy used by farmers and by customers – redesigning supply chains to stop deforestation by enhancing transparency and traceability of key ingredients such as cocoa, soy, and beef, working with farmers on regenerative agriculture and other smart agriculture initiatives, and improving and optimizing logistics.

Mars also said that it will embed climate action in its governance and business planning, including in variable remuneration plans of senior executives, as well as in its investment planning and M&A strategy, and by including climate action as a shareholder objective.

Barry Parkin, Mars Chief Sustainability and Procurement Officer, said:

“Mars has always followed science, and science says we must cut our emissions across our full value chain by 50% by 2030. Science points us to five fundamentals that Net Zero roadmaps should consider to deliver real impact, for example that there is no place for exclusions or exceptions and that we must prioritize performance over promises. In preparing our roadmap, we’ve learned that this is both entirely possible to deliver with existing science and technology as well as entirely affordable.”

The company said that its emissions peaked in 2018, and that it has already reduced absolute emissions by 8%, or 2.6 million metric tons, on a 2015 basis, despite 60% business growth over that period. Cutting emissions in half by 2030 would eliminate approximately 15 million tons of emissions.

Weihrauch added:

“Profit and purpose are not enemies. Investment in climate is not a trade-off between planet and productivity, or between environment and employment. Consumers and our Associates clearly want both – and so do we. Investing in emissions reductions is sound business policy, it is achievable, affordable, and it is absolutely necessary.”

Advanced technology company Lyten announced today that it has raised $200 million, with proceeds from the financing aimed at scaling the production of a series of new products, providing decarbonization solutions for some of the largest greenhouse gas-emitting sectors, based on its 3D graphene supermaterials.

Founded in 2015, California-based Lyten develops applications utilizing its 3D graphene for the decarbonization of some of the hardest-to-abate sectors. 2D graphene is a single-layer sheet of carbon atoms with properties including being stronger than steel, having greater flexibility than rubber, more electrically conducive than copper, and ultralight weight. Lyten’s 3D graphene enables the supermaterial to be commercialized, by enabling its properties to be infused into other materials.

The new product lines to be supported by the financing include next-gen lithium-sulfur batteries with a low carbon footprint and without the use of nickel, cobalt, manganese, and graphite, lightweight composites that can reduce the amount of plastic used by up to half while maintaining structural and impact strength for applications including automotive, aviation, and industrials, and advanced sensor arrays for improved detection in automotive, industrial, health, and safety applications.

Dan Cook, Lyten’s co-founder and CEO, said:

“We are excited to welcome our Series B investors, each a leader in their respective markets and committed to achieving aggressive net zero targets for their industry. The influx of strategic investors reflects the evolution of Lyten from its early days of developing a first-of-its-kind supermaterial to now collaborating with industry leaders to bring disruptive, decarbonizing applications to market, utilizing the differentiated properties of Lyten 3D Graphene.”

The company said that it is working with Fortune 500 companies including Stellantis and FedEx, as well as with the U.S. Government on the delivery of new products. It anticipates delivering its first commercial composites application to customers this year.

Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares said:

“Lyten’s materials platform is a key investment for Stellantis Ventures, in line with our Dare Forward 2030 goal to accelerate deployment of innovative, customer-centric technologies. Specifically, Lyten’s Lithium-Sulfur battery has the potential to be a key ingredient in enabling mass-market EV adoption globally, and their material technology is equally well-positioned to help reduce vehicle weight, which is all necessary for our industry to achieve carbon net zero goals.”

The funding round was led by venture capital firm Prime Movers Lab, and included participation fro strategic investors including Stellantis, FedEx, Honeywell, and Walbridge Aldinger Company.

Zia Huque, General Partner at Prime Movers Lab, and member of the Lyten Board of Directors, said:

“Lyten stands out as a unique company that combines a truly novel materials technology with an extraordinarily talented management team capable of developing and commercializing multiple applications. Its first three applications, Lithium-Sulfur batteries, Composites, and IoT Sensors, each deliver capabilities into the largest industries in the world that would simply not be possible without their proprietary 3D Graphene.”

Food and beverage giant Nestlé announced today the launch of a new pilot project aimed at producing low carbon fertilizer using cocoa shells, and addressing a major source of agricultural greenhouse gas emissions.

Agriculture has emerged as a major focus area for climate action, as the sector accounts for a significant proportion of GHG emissions, and is among the most difficult areas to address climate impact. The sector contributes a significant proportion of the climate impact of the food and beverage sector, which in turn accounts for approximately a third of global GHG emissions.

Under the new UK-based project, Nestlé, one the world’s largest corporate cocoa consumers, will assess whether cocoa shells from a confectionery site in York can be used to create a low-carbon fertilizer. The two-year trial will evaluate the fertilizer’s performance on crop production, soil health and GHG emissions. If the project is successful, the company said that up to 7,000 tonnes of low-carbon fertilizer, roughly 25% the total used for the company’s UK wheat production, could be produced and offered to farmers in its UK wheat supply chain.

Nestlé announced a commitment in 2019 to achieve net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050, and in 2020 the company published its “time bound plan” to reach its climate goals, which also include targets to achieve a 20% emissions reduction by 2025 and 50% by 2030.

95% of Nestlé’s GHG emissions come from the company’s value chain, including around two-thirds from sourcing ingredients, and only around 5% from its direct operations. One of the company’s key emissions reduction initiatives includes advancing regenerative agriculture and farming practices, such as improving soil health, integrating trees into livestock foraging areas, switching to organic fertilizers and increasing the ability of farmland to store carbon.

In addition to heling the company reach its climate goals, Nestlé said that increasing production of low carbon fertilizer can also provide farmers with a more sustainable product at a reliable price.

Matt Ryan, Regeneration Lead at Nestlé UK & Ireland, said:

“Farmers often find themselves to be among the first groups exposed to global issues, and these risks are then borne by the food system we all depend upon. We have to find ways to build more resilience into the system and optimizing our use of natural resources is a critical part of this. This project is a small, but very meaningful step towards a net zero future, where farmers, local enterprises, and nature all stand to benefit.”

Amazon announced today a 10-year agreement for the purchase of 250,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide removal credits with energy giant Occidental’s (Oxy) carbon capture platform 1PointFive. The announcement marks Amazon’s first investment in Direct Air Capture (DAC) technology, and one of the largest-ever orders for a DAC facility.

DAC technology, listed by the IEA as a key carbon removal tool in the transition to a net-zero energy system, extracts CO2 directly from the atmosphere for use as a raw material or permanently removed when combined with storage. According to the landmark Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) climate change mitigation study released last year, scenarios that limit warming to 1.5°C include carbon dioxide removal methods scaling to billions of tons of removal annually over the coming decades, with DAC positioned to potentially account for a significant portion of the total.

Amazon’s carbon dioxide removal (CDR) credits will be enabled by 1PointFive’s Texas-bases DAC plant STRATOS, which is currently under construction and expected to be commercially operational in 2025. When fully operational, Stratos is expected to capture 500,000 metric tons of CO2 annually, making it the world’s largest plant of its kind. As part of the agreement, the captured CO2 used for the CDR credits will be stored in saline reservoirs.

Michael Avery, President and General Manager of 1PointFive, said:

“The addition of 1PointFive’s high-integrity, quantifiable carbon removal credits support Amazon’s path to achieve net zero and shows the growing role that DAC technology will play in decarbonization pathways. We are excited to collaborate with Amazon to help them achieve their sustainability goals.”

The agreement follows the announcement last month that the South Texas DAC hub being developed by month that Oxy, DAC technology provider Carbon Engineering and engineering company Worley was selected by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to receive grants of up to $600 million, one of only two projects selected.

Oxy also announced an agreement last month to acquire Carbon Engineering, in a deal the company said would accelerate the deployment of Direct Air Capture “as a large-scale, cost effective, global carbon removal solution.”

Amazon also announced an investment by its Climate Pledge Fund in DAC technology company CarbonCapture. CarbonCapture is currently developing “Project Bison,” a new DAC project in Wyoming in partnership with carbon storage developer Frontier Carbon Solutions. The project is expected to be operational by late 2023, and to be developed over multiple phases through 2030, reaching 5 million tons of capture and storage annual capacity.

In addition to the investment, CarbonCapture will make up to 100,000 tons of carbon removal credits available to Amazon. Amazon said that it aims to make the credits available to businesses within the company as well as to suppliers, selling partners, and customers.

Adrian Corless, CarbonCapture’s CEO and Chief Technology Officer, said:

“We’re extremely excited to be backed by a first-class venture investor like Amazon’s Climate Pledge Fund. Further, we’re looking forward to leveraging our relationship with Amazon to both democratize access and reduce the long-run cost of producing carbon removal credits.”

Amazon’s Climate Pledge fund is a venture investment program aimed at backing visionary companies developing products and services that facilitate the transition to a zero carbon economy. The $2 billion fund was established in June 2020, aiming to help Amazon and other companies achieve the goals outlined in The Climate Pledge, including reaching net zero carbon by 2040.

Kara Hurst, Vice President of Worldwide Sustainability at Amazon, said:

“Amazon’s primary focus is to decarbonize our global operations and reach net-zero carbon by 2040 through our transition to renewable energy, building with more sustainable materials and electrifying our delivery fleet and global logistics. These investments in direct air capture complement our emissions reductions plans and we are excited to support the growth and deployment of this technology.”

European market infrastructure provider Euronext announced the launch of a series of ESG tools and sustainable finance-focused initiatives, including making issuers’ non-financial data available on its website.

According to Euronext, the new initiatives will support its “Fit for 1.5°” climate commitment, which is based on the development of products and services that would help the company, its partners and clients, and the European economy curb the increase in global temperatures, and its “Growth for Impact 2024” strategy to build the leading market infrastructure in Europe, which includes empowering sustainable finance as a key strategic priority.

Euronext CEO and Chairman Stéphane Boujnah said:

“Effective positive change requires efforts and cooperation among key players in the market. Euronext can significantly impact the European sustainability agenda by leveraging its distinct position in financing the real economy and linking local economies with global capital markets.”

One of the new tools launched by Euronext includes “My ESG Profile,” a digital tool enabling issuers to showcase their sustainability efforts and allowing investors to access ESG data. Euronext said that it will deploy nearly 1,900 ESG company profiles, becoming the first exchange to provide standardized non-financial issuer data available on its website.

Euronext also announced the creation of a new family of biodiversity-focused indices, launching the Euronext Biodiversity Enablers index, developed in partnership with Iceberg Data Lab. The new index serves as a global benchmark highlighting companies’ positive biodiversity impact through metrics like Dependency Exposure Score and Biodiversity Avoided Impact. Companies in the index are selected from the “Euronext World Index” universe.

Additional initiatives announced by the company include the strengthening of the ESG content in its pre-IPO educational programs, and the publication of a new “ESG pre-IPO guide” outlining recommendations on best practices for ESG during the IPO process.

Boujnah added:

“As strong advocates of the CSRD directive, we firmly believe that the shift towards sustainable finance relies on improved extra-financial standards and more precise, regulated and granular ESG criteria. Our newly unveiled ESG products and services are designed to empower companies in their pursuit of these goals.”

Euronext also announced the launch of the “Euronext Foundation” aimed at supporting local sustainable communities and projects across Europe, in areas including financial literacy, diversity and inclusion, and marine resources.

Alternative asset and private equity investor KKR announced today an investment of $750 million in transport electrification and battery storage solutions provider Zenobē.

KKR said that the investment will be used to scale Zenobē across two of the largest decarbonization opportunities in infrastructure, namely accelerating the global decarbonization of diesel fleets, and decarbonizing the energy sector through grid services.

Shreya Malik, Director in KKR’s European Infrastructure team, said:

“We believe Zenobē will continue to benefit from strong secular tail winds including stricter emission regulation in urban and regional areas, and the greater use of low carbon generation in the energy mix driving a need for grid balancing solutions. We see significant growth opportunities within Zenobē’s existing customer base, as well as huge potential in new markets globally.”

Founded in 2017, London-based Zenobē provides electrification solutions for fleets and battery storage solutions for grid network infrastructure. The company’s solutions include the conversion of conventional internal combustion vehicles to electric, covering chassis financing, vehicle batteries, depot charging infrastructure, and integrated software. The company also develops large-scale grid-connected batteries to bolster low-carbon energy generation and support net-zero ambitions while maintaining grid stability.

Zenobē currently has operations in the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Benelux, and is expanding into North America. The company has 430MW of battery storage in operation or under construction with another 1.2GW of projects in advanced development, and is the largest owner and operator of EV buses in the UK, Australia and New Zealand.

Nicholas Beatty, Co-founder and Director of Zenobē, said:

“KKR provides Zenobē with a leading international strategic partner to support our expansion plans, taking our experience in accelerating the electrification of fleets and maximizing the uptake of renewables into North America, Europe, Australasia and other markets. It also provides support for our ability to raise further debt funding for these expansion plans.”

The investment is the first from KKR’s new global climate strategy, dedicated to investing in solutions at scale to support the transition to a low-carbon economy.

Alberto Signori, Partner in KKR’s European Infrastructure team, said:

“This is a rare opportunity to support a clear leader in transport decarbonisation and battery storage, two sectors which are critical in driving the transition to a net-zero world. As a significant contributor to the decarbonisation of our economies, Zenobē is an exemplary first investment in KKR’s global climate strategy which seeks to scale up businesses at the forefront of delivering real-world solutions to reduce carbon emissions.”

Zenobē’s current majority shareholder, M&G plc’s infrastructure investment arm Infracapital, will also invest alongside KKR, with the two firms becoming joint majority shareholders.

Andy Matthews, Head of Greenfield at Infracapital, said:

“This strategic partnership marks a significant milestone for the business and fulfils our confidence in its ability to continue to play a leading role in sustainable solutions. We look forward to continuing to contribute our expertise and resources to support Zenobē’s further success on a global scale, whilst creating long-term value for our investors.”

Sustainable energy infrastructure technology provider Nuventura announced today that it has raised €25 million, with proceeds supporting its solutions to help aimed at accelerating the company’s efforts to support the energy industry’s shift away from the use of greenhouse gas (GHG)-based infrastructure.

Founded in 2017, Berlin-based Nuventura specializes in GIS (gas-insulated switchgear) technologies that replaces sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) with dry air. SF6 is a potent greenhouse gas with more than 25,000x global warming power than CO2. Gas insulated switchgear is a key component in electrical grids and energy infrastructure. According to the company, its GIS technology eliminates the operational and environmental problems associated with SF6, while retaining its benefits, which include its compact physical footprint and reliability.

Nuventura sais that the proceeds from the funding will support its product portfolio expansion and the development of its manufacturing capabilities around the world.

Dr Fabian Lemke, Nuventura Co-founder and CEO, said:

“Greater appreciation for the environmental threats posed by SF6 and accompanying regulatory oversight means that Nuventura, with our dry-air alternatives, is very much in the right place at the right time. This funding round is evidence of that and puts us in an ideal position to expand our operations internationally and continue providing sustainable switchgear alternatives for different use-cases together with our valued business partners around the globe.”

The financing was led by led by sustainable finance asset manager Mirova, with new investors including Forward.one, and EIC Accelerator, and existing investors IBB Ventures, ADB Ventures, Cycle Group, Future Energy Ventures, and DOEN Participaties.

Anne Boulet, Investment Manager at Mirova, said:

“The purpose of Mirova’s private equity strategy is to foster the growth of innovative companies having a positive environmental impact. As the drive towards a progressive SF6 phase out is increasing, we are thrilled to have been given the opportunity to support Nuventura’s great team in their international expansion and as such actively contribute to decarbonising the energy industry.”

Google announced today the signing of a 58 MW power purchase agreement (PPA) with Power Capital Renewable Energy, marking the technology giant’s first long-term renewable energy deal in Ireland.

According to Google, the new agreement will help the company achieve 60% carbon-free energy in its offices and data centers in Ireland in 2025. The new agreement will also enable the construction of the Tullabeg Solar Farm, which will provide new-to-the-grid capacity.

In a blog post announcing the financing, Ainhoa Anda, Data Center Energy Senior Lead, Google, said:

“In addition to contributing to decarbonizing Google’s services, renewable projects like this one help Ireland to achieve its own renewable energy targets. The Irish Government’s Climate Action Plan aims to meet 80% of the national electricity demand with renewable energy. It also sets a sub-target for corporate electricity consumers, that 15% of the country’s electricity demand by 2030 should be met through corporate PPAs. This project brings Ireland closer to reaching these goals.”

According to Google, the new agreement will contribute to its commitment to power all its operations on 24/7 carbon-free energy (CFE) by 2030. Google parent Alphabet announced a 24/7 CFE ambition in 2020, aiming to run its entire business on carbon-free energy by 2030. Operating on 24/7 CFE means matching electricity demand with CFE supply every hour of every day, in every region where the company operates.

The agreement marks the latest in a series of renewable energy announcements by Google, including a 189 MW PPA last month with Apex Clean Energy, a 15-year 150 MW PPA in April with Ørsted, and a collaboration launched in March with renewable transaction infrastructure provider LevelTen Energy to provide a faster and easier RFP process for PPAs, speeding up the time to negotiate and execute deals by around 80%.

Anda added:

“Since we began purchasing renewable energy in 2010, we’ve signed more than 35 wind and solar agreements in Europe totalling nearly 3 gigawatts of clean energy generation capacity — the equivalent of installing more than 9 million solar panels.”