Carbon Upcycling Technologies secures $6M to scale up their infrastructure

The current manufacturing processes of producing this cement alternative ultimately are unsustainable.

CALGARY — Carbon Upcycling Technologies, a carbon utilization company that produces a CO2-embedded cement and concrete additive, announced the closing of $6 million in financing led by Clean Energy Ventures, a venture capital firm funding early-stage climate tech innovations, with participation from CEMEX Ventures, the corporate venture capital of CEMEX, Amplify Capital, a venture fund that invests in early-stage startups addressing global problems, and Oxy Low Carbon Ventures (OLCV), a subsidiary of Occidental (Oxy) focused on low-carbon technologies and business solutions. The round includes participation from Zero Carbon Partners, Purpose ESG, Clean Energy Venture Group, Fund for Sustainability and Energy, Prithvi Ventures, Bryan Trudel, and Mark and Faye McGregor.

Carbon Upcycling is a company that has reportedly achieved a 30 percent emissions reduction in concrete production and is ready to scale. The company will leverage the funding to grow its team and build its second commercial-scale facility in North America, capable of manufacturing more than 200 tons per day of low-carbon cement and concrete additive.

The foundation of infrastructure globally, cement is among the most widely used construction materials in both residential and commercial applications. Between rapidly urbanizing populations in developing countries and unprecedented infrastructure spending in developed countries, it presents a $750 billion annual global market opportunity and a massive decarbonization challenge simultaneously, accounting for 8 percent of global CO2 emissions.

“The U.S. desires to invest at an extraordinary level to improve its infrastructure while simultaneously addressing ambitious climate goals. Our aim is to support growth objectives while lowering carbon emissions both in the U.S. and internationally, and Carbon Upcycling’s extraordinary team, game-changing technology and partnerships with the leading industry participants in the building materials sector fit squarely within our strategy,” says Daniel Goldman, co-founder and managing partner of Clean Energy Ventures. “Our investment in Carbon Upcycling is premised on the potential for its technology to dramatically mitigate carbon emissions and we estimate that with wide scale deployment, over four gigatons of carbon emissions can be mitigated through 2050, a critical milestone required for a sector that is notoriously hard to decarbonize.”

While supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) have risen in popularity over the last decade, the current manufacturing processes of producing this cement alternative ultimately are unsustainable, largely conceding performance in favor of emissions reduction. Through its portfolio of CO2-derived solid nanoparticles, Carbon Upcycling has reportedly technically validated its solutions for use in plastics as well and has recently launched a consumer goods brand, Oco.

Founded to address the carbon intensity of concrete, Carbon Upcycling’s technology is trying to leverage local, high-volume and non-polluting feedstocks to create more durable concrete with 30 percent less carbon emissions compared to traditional SCMs available on the market today.

“We are at the inflection point for the zero-carbon age, and it’s mission-critical to bring carbon-to-value innovation to scale and truly decarbonize all parts of our economy,” said Apoorv Sinha, CEO of Carbon Upcycling Technologies. “At Carbon Upcycling, we are targeting emissions at the source by capturing CO2 emitted directly from the cement production kilns. Our technology and business model develop more robust local supply chains, which are vital amid vast urban growth and infrastructure development. The enthusiasm and support from both investors and cement producers for our technology have been evident this year, and with the funding, Carbon Upcycling is well on its way to becoming one of the most impactful carbon utilization companies that can contribute to a decarbonized energy transition in the coming decades.”