Neustark, a Switzerland-based carbon removal provider, has raised $69 million in a funding round. The equity round was led by Decarbonization Partners, a partnership between BlackRock (invested in FintechOS and Upvest) and Temasek (invested in Zilingo and Twin Health).
Climate tech growth investor Blume Equity also participated in the round. Other investors that took part in the round include Holcim, Siemens Financial Services, Verve Ventures, and ACE Ventures. In addition, UBS has contributed capital to the round via debt financing.
This is claimed to be one of the largest growth equity investment rounds in the carbon removal sector. In addition to the investment, Neustark also has a strategic collaboration with Holcim to scale up its carbon removal technology globally, enabling building solutions that are both circular and low-carbon.
Funds utilisation
Neustark will be able to capitalise on this investment and enter into new markets in North America and Asia Pacific. Also, the company will expand its team and enhance its offerings to meet the increasing global demand for carbon dioxide removal (CDR).
“We turn the world’s largest waste stream – demolition concrete – into a carbon sink. In the last year, we have already deployed our unique solution at 19 sites. This growth investment will take us into the next exciting phase of our mission, helping us to further scale our impact across Europe, enter new markets in North America and Asia Pacific, and develop new solutions to store even more CO2 in mineral waste streams,” said Johannes Tiefenthaler, co-CEO and founder at Neustark.
What does Neustark do?
Limiting global warming to 1.5°C implies reaching net zero CO2 emissions in 2050 according to the IPCC. Next to substantially reducing emissions, this target will only be possible by globally deploying carbon removal solutions at the scale of billions of tonnes of CO2.
Neustark has developed a solution to permanently store CO2 from the air in recycled mineral waste such as demolished concrete. Its solution has been deployed in Switzerland and Europe and is already capturing and storing tonnes of CO2 every day. Its ambition is to remove one million tonnes of CO2 in 2030 and beyond that.
Its technology triggers an accelerated mineralisation process, binding the CO2 permanently to the pores and surface of the granules. The carbonated, recycled aggregate can then be used to build roads or to produce fresh recycled building materials. The mineralisation process stores the captured CO2 for hundreds of thousands of years, and the risk of reversal is proven to be slim to none.
Together with construction recycling partners, Neustark currently has 19 carbon capture and storage plants in operation across Switzerland, Austria, Liechtenstein, and Germany. 40 future plants are currently under construction across Europe, with a robust pipeline of projects beyond that. Its clients include Microsoft, UBS, and NextGen.
Meghan Sharp, Global Head & Chief Investment Officer of Decarbonisation Partners, said: “With carbon capture, utilisation, and storage being one of our key investment focuses, we believe that we have found a perfect partner to help scale the industry – and ultimately its decarbonisation impact – in the years to come. Neustark not only helps organisations integrate carbon removal to address their hard-to-abate emissions, but their solution also contributes to decarbonising the construction industry.”
What do we think about Neustark?
The Swiss startup is making an impact in the carbon removal sector with its innovative approach to turning demolition concrete into a carbon sink. The recent funding round will enable the company to expand globally and enhance its offerings. Its technology permanently stores CO2 in recycled mineral waste, representing a crucial step towards achieving net-zero emissions and decarbonising the construction industry.
