🌍 De-ranged debate over gas stoves heats up

Happy MLK Monday!

The long weekend’s a great time to catch up on our 2022 Climate Tech Funding Report. Tl;dr $40b invested into 1,000+ true climate venture startups last year. All industries grew in deal count, but shrinking deal sizes and slow later-stage rounds contracted the market 3% versus 2021’s bull tear. Pour yourself a cup of coffee, or better yet bring over the whole pot to fully enjoy the 20+ charts and easter eggs.

In the news, misinformation around a rumored gas stove ban fans the flames of conservative media with lessons for anti-climate tech consumer adoption. England bans single use plastics, #ExxonKnew even more than we thought, and Australia’s Sun Cable project stalls. In this week’s massive raises: $233m for solar leasing, $150m for plastic recycling, and $125m for ESG markets.

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Adding gas to the flames

A rumor about the US banning gas stoves lit social media aflame.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) flagged the little blue flames for their contribution to indoor air pollution and linked health problems, like 13% of childhood asthma. Republicans and Twitter fiercely lashed back to allegations of a gas stove phase out - particularly after NY Gov. Hochul proposed banning gas in new buildings last week.

Even as the CPSC hustles to set the record straight that it’s merely researching and “not looking to ban gas stoves”, the culture wars have already commenced. Rhetoric parallels typical NIMBYism and politicization of scientifically-backed climate and health regulations.

ABSOLUTELY NOT.

Apparently they don’t even cook. Idiots. https://t.co/hefHQjZbcx
— Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene🇺🇸 (@RepMTG) January 10, 2023

God. Guns. Gas stoves.
— Rep. Jim Jordan (@Jim_Jordan) January 12, 2023

I’ll NEVER give up my gas stove. If the maniacs in the White House come for my stove, they can pry it from my cold dead hands. COME AND TAKE IT!!
— Ronny Jackson (@RonnyJacksonTX) January 10, 2023

In order to electrify America, so the saying goes, we must replace one billion machines. Around 40% of US homes cook with gas; assuming average usage of about 2,800 cubic feet per year, this equates to less than 0.5% of total residential consumption. Tiny, right? The linchpin rub lies with, as Amy Westervelt puts it, “It's not about the stoves it's about the infrastructure required for the stoves” that keeps gas in residential and commercial buildings.

The future points towards induction and electric cooktops:

📈 Trends. Electricity is already the most common energy source for cooking nationwide. Gas stove bans passed in cities like NYC and Los Angeles targeting only new development.

🥕 Incentives. The IRA has allocated $4bn+ for consumer rebates on high-efficiency electric appliances, including stoves.

🍳 Innovators. Impulse Labs, Channing Street Copper Co, and many legacy stove cos are developing new electric/induction stove solutions.

Besides Nest and Tesla, climate tech folks have a poor track record of marketing new consumer technology adoption as a better, cheaper, cooler alternative to fossil-based machinery versus a mandatory replacement. The IRA incentives should help to ease the green premium of opting for a clean tech home appliance transition, for those who choose to “come and take it”!

Deals of the Week (1/9-1/15)

☀️ Enpal, a Germany-based solar leasing platform, raised $233m in Series D funding from TPG, The Westly Group, Activate Capital Partners, SoftBank Vision Fund, Princeville Capital, and HV Capital.

♻️ Nexus Circular, a Atlanta, GA-based advanced plastic recycling company, raised $150m in funding from Cox Enterprises.

💨 Xpansiv, an ESG and environmental markets infrastructure provider, raised $125m in Growth funding from Bank of America and Goldman Sachs.

☀️ Tigo Energy, a Campbell, CA-based company providing solar and energy storage solutions, raised $50m in convertible note Funding from Letterone Holdings SA.

🛵 Tenways EBike, a Hong Kong-based electric bike manufacturer, raised $44m in Series A funding from L Catterton and Huaying Venture Capital.

🥩 No Meat Factory, a Canada-based plant-based protein producer for third-party customers, raised $42m in Series B funding from Tengelmann Growth Partners and Emil Capital Partners.

⚡ Hystar, a Norway-based developer of PEM electrolyzers, raised $26m in Series B funding from AP Ventures, Mitsubishi Corp, Finindus, Nippon Steel Trading, Hillhouse Investment, Trustbridge Partners, SINTEF Ventures and Firda.

🛰️ Chooose, a Norway-based SaaS platform enabling enterprise to integrate climate action into their customer experiences, raised $15m in Series A funding from Sound Ventures, GenZero, Vinyl Capital, Shell Ventures, Contrarian Ventures, and Amadeus Ventures.

🥩 Algama, an alternative protein platform using algae, raised $14m in Series A funding from Thai Union Ventures, Noshaq, Newtree Impact, Beyond Impact Advisors, and Grupo Bimbo.

💨 Captura, a Pasadena, CA-based ocean carbon removal startup, raised $12m in Series A funding from Equinor Ventures, Aramco Ventures, Caltech, Hitachi Ventures, Future Planet Capital, and mTerra Ventures.

🐠 ReelData AI, a Canada-based company providing aquaculture data software for farmers, raised $8m in Series A funding from Buoyant Ventures, S2G Ventures and The Nest Family Office.

💨 Visolis, a Berkeley, CA-based company developing carbon-negative, bio-based chemicals, raised $8m in Seed funding from BlueYard Capital, Zeon Ventures, Global Brain Corporation, First Bight Ventures, and Acequia Capital.

🚗 Scorpio Electric, a Singapore-based electric motorcycle manufacturer, raised $7m in funding.

🚗 Vianova, a France-based company providing data analytics for shared sustainable transportation, raised $7m in Series A funding from Bâloise Holding, XAnge, RATP Capital Innovation, Ponooc, La Poste Ventures, and Contrarian Ventures.

⚡ EcoG, a Germany-based EV charging infrastructure software company, raised $7m in Series A funding from Lindner Group, Helen Ventures, BayBG Venture Capital, and Ananda Impact Ventures.

🌾 EnrichAg, a Canada-based company providing sustainable crop protection solutions, raised $6m in Seed funding from At One Ventures.

🏠 Equium, a France-based producer of acoustic heat pumps, raised $5m in Seed funding from Bpifrance.

⚡ Measurable.energy, a UK-based developing smart, power sockets to eliminate ghost energy, raised $4.8m in Series A funding from RO Capital Partners, Clean Growth Fund, Vectr7 Investment Partners LLP, and MMC Ventures.

🥩 Project Eaden, a Germany-based alternative meat producer, raised $2m in Seed funding from Creandum, Magnetic and Atlantic Food Labs.

🌳 Open Forest Protocol, a Switzerland-based open source forestation projects platform, raised $4m in Pre-Seed funding from Shima Capital, Valor Capital Group, Übermorgen Ventures, Not Boring Capital, Mercy Corps Ventures, Byzantine Maritime, Big Brain Holdings, and Aera VC.

⚡ Hydrogenera, a Bulgaria-based company developing hydrogen electrolyzers, raised $2m in funding from Karoll, MFG INvest, and Impetus Capital.

🌱 Tribaldata, a Spain-based platform to help media and advertisers get to net zero, raised $1m in Seed funding from Garbi Capital and Chamberi Ventures.

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Exits & New Funds:

Goldman Sachs Asset Management raised $1.6B for its first private equity fund focused on investing in companies providing climate and environmental solutions.

Evolutions Markets, a NY-based provider of environmental market advisory services, was acquired by Xpansiv.

InfiSense, a Boston, MA-based efficiency performance data provider, was acquired by Sealed, a provider of home weatherization and electrification services.

In the News

A FOAK blueprint for decarbonizing transport. Biden officials released a multi-agency strategy for cutting CO2 emissions from U.S. transportation by 2050 across the DOE, DOT, EPA, and HUD (Housing and Urban Development). The plan includes increasing community access, improving mass transit, and transitioning to cleaner options.

The DOE is all over batteries. The LPO offered a conditional commitment for up to $700m to Ioneer Rhyolite Ridge to develop a domestic supply of lithium carbonate, equivalent to ∼370,000 EVs each year. Meanwhile, ARPA-E’s EVs4ALL also announced $42m for 12 battery supply chain projects for innovators including 24M, Ampcera, South 8 Technologies, Tyfast Energy, and Zeta Energy.

Solar is making its US comeback. Hanwha Qcells plans to build a $2.5B solar plant in Georgia that will make 60,000 panels a day. Meanwhile, federal agents seized ~$500 million worth of solar modules and other imports in 2022 due to forced-labor concerns from China (which controls 80% of the global solar module market).

Hydrostor, an CAES (compressed air energy storage) company, signed its first offtake agreement, a ~$1B PPA with California’s Central Coast Community Energy to purchase 200 MW of energy storage. The 500 MW LDES facility coming online 2028 will take the lead for largest in the world.

Single-use or never-use. England joins a growing list of other countries that will ban single-use plastics, starting from October 2023.

Climeworks delivered its first certified carbon removal for corporate customers including Microsoft, Shopify and Stripe.

Pop-up

COP out? Sultan al-Jabar, the head of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, will lead COP28 in the UAE next year, causing more #reacts than for all of COP27 combined.

Another silent victim in the Ukraine war – the environment.

Dolphins are literally shouting to be heard over marine-made noise pollution.

Private EV charging networks race ahead with Mercedes-Benz’s plan to launch 10,000 EV chargers by 2030, in the dust of Tesla and GM’s similar efforts.

US carbon emissions were estimated to be up 1.3% in 2022, for a second year in a row. Rhodium Group suggests that the ongoing shift to carbon-free electricity will halve emissions by 2030.

India tops Time’s leaderboard as the most important country in the climate fight.

Nature is healing! The ozone layer is on track to fully recover, thanks in large part to China’s sweeping reduction in chlorofluorocarbons refrigerant usage.

We already knew that they knew. But now we know that Exxon in the 1970s knew more than the academic community knew about climate change at the time.

Redfin partnered with WattBuy to estimate energy costs for 85m US homes. Renters can see estimated utility costs and buyers can see estimated solar savings.

$30m in matching funds for New York-based pre-seed/seed companies in sectors that support public good, including climate tech.

Texas “wind rancher” conservatives make a windfall from turbines.

Japan is re-investing in nuclear. Can it stay trendy long enough for plants to turn the power on?

So you want to work in climate? Check out this Google resource sheet of your dreams complete with job boards, communities, and newsletters.

A day without a phone, doorknobs, contacts, or playing cards. Reporter A.J. Jacobs tries to live a day without plastic. He has 164 violations.

The NFL Texans are buying carbon credits to offset the team’s flights from… Occidental.

The future may not look so bright anymore for Sun Cable, the massive $21B undersea solar cable project stretching from Singapore to Australia after a disagreement between its two main backers, billionaires Mike Cannon-Brookes and Andrew Forrest.

What, exactly, is a bomb cyclone?

We like lists and we particularly like this list of 10 climate tech trends to watch from The Westly Group.

Opportunities & Events:

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