- Clementum Capital closed the first installment of its 150 million euro ($156 million) fund.
- It will invest in early-stage European startups with the potential to reduce one million tons of carbon dioxide annually.
- We got an exclusive look at the presentation I used to convince LPs to invest.
A venture capital firm committed to investing in startups that clamp down on CO2 emissions has closed the first batch of its €150 million (about $156 million) fund.
Climentum Capital, which was first launched in 2020, took two years to reach the initial closing of Fund 1. The investor will write checks of up to €5 million for companies between the initial phase and phase one in Europe.
Yoann Berno, Climentum’s general partner, said scaling up during the economic downturn and pandemic hasn’t been easy, but this climate technology was a safe bet.
“Climate technology is going to occupy the rest of our days — it’s not going away,” he told Insider. “It’s the number one asset class of the future.”
He added that this was driven by a number of macro trends including consumer demand, regulation, shifting corporate spending and strategies, and increased pressure on energy.
Climentum, a combination of ‘climate’ and ‘momentum’, will invest in companies that should be able, on a large scale, to reduce 1 megaton of CO2 or equivalent per year. The company has started investing but is waiting to close deals.
Perno, a serial entrepreneur turned investor, launched the fund along with
angel investor
and former founder Dörte Hirschberg, former CEO of financial services Morten Halborg, and former influential director at Danish biotech firm Stefan Maard. A fifth partner has yet to be announced, but Birno said she is a Stockholm-based woman with deep technical expertise.
Climentum looks to startups in six high-emissions categories, referred to as “strike areas”: Next Generation Renewables, Food and Agriculture, Industry and Manufacturing, Buildings and Architecture, Transportation and Mobility, and Waste and Materials.
The investor has an advisor with industry knowledge or a PhD for each so-called strike zone, Perno said.
Climentum has also shortlisted 20 startups targeting under each category and looking for solutions to specific problems such as how drone technology can speed up reforestation or better manage forests, better redistribute food, and raise insects and algae as a form of direct capture. .
Pernod said carbon reduction potential is at the heart of Climentum’s investment strategy. The company conducts a full lifecycle analysis of the startups in its deal pipeline to determine who will be the “carbon winner” and meet the one megaton criterion.
it’s for Article 9 fund under EU regulation, which means it must comply with additional impact reporting requirements and only make sustainable investments. Perno said Climentum has a dual carry structure, so partners are only rewarded with a percentage of profits once financial and impact goals are met.
Although climate technology is often cited as requiring patient capital, Climentum wants to see results within five to seven years. This will help assess whether its new structure is working and point to newer funds where they should invest, particularly during the controversy surrounding it. Climate mitigation and adaptation Berno said.
Climentum’s current LP base includes multinational chemical venture capital arm BASF, Danish bank Arbejdernes Landsbank, Danish Growth Fund Vaekstfonden, and technology entrepreneurs. Perno said there is more awareness of climate issues in the Nordic countries.
“That’s why our LP base is Nordic-centric. There’s a level of maturity in their Scandinavian and Nordic thinking that you don’t find anywhere else.”
The fund, which operates remotely first and is based in Stockholm, Berlin and Copenhagen, expects to reach final closure by the end of 2022.
Check out the revised deck I used to bring the LPs on board below.
