Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) technology company Velocys today announced it has raised $40 million in growth capital, shortly after delisting from the London Stock Exchange's AIM market and indicating the need to raise capital to continue operating .
The financial consortium included growth investors Carbon Direct Capital, Lightrock, GenZero and Kibo Investments.
Kevin Bone, partner at Lightrock, said:
“We are delighted to partner with Velocys as it takes the next steps in its journey to become the leading provider of SAF solutions for the aviation industry. This critical objective requires long-term support with the necessary experience supporting industrial companies as they seek to realize their potential. I have no doubt that this consortium is best placed to do just that.”
Founded through Oxford University technology spin-out company Oxford Catalysts, UK-based Velocys enables customers to produce immediate-entry, carbon-negative fuels that are functionally equivalent to fuels currently in use, at from a variety of waste materials such as municipal solid waste, woody biomass and CO2 and green hydrogen using its proprietary Fischer-Tropsch based technology.
Sustainable aviation fuel is seen as one of the key tools to help decarbonize the aviation industry, which is currently responsible for 2-3% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The investment comes at a time when demand for SAF is expected to increase dramatically in the coming years, as airlines turn to the technology as one of the key solutions to achieving their climate objectives, and as governments begin to demand increasing the use of SAF to achieve its own decarbonization. ambitions. The EU, for example, recently announced the adoption of a law mandating the minimum use of SAF, increasing to 70% of fuel blends by 2050, and the US Inflation Reduction Act encourages the use of SAF through strong incentives taxes.
May Liew, Chief Investment Officer at GenZero, said:
“Decarbonizing the global aviation industry will require innovative solutions that can be adopted easily and at scale. This is where Velocys' pioneering Fischer-Tropsch reactor is relevant, with its modularity and efficiency to support the development of advanced biofuel applications. By leveraging technology to transform waste into sustainable aviation fuel, Velocys is well positioned to play a key role in expanding the use of low-carbon fuels to pave the way for net-zero emissions aviation.”
According to Velocys, the new capital will be used to accelerate the delivery of its technology for customer projects, as well as to help the company build its technological leadership, scale production and improve its team.
Velocys CEO Henrik Wareborn said:
“The agreement secures the future of Velocys, our pioneering technology and our industry-leading talent, allowing us to keep our foot on the accelerator as we continue to lead the way in innovative sustainable jet fuel solutions as we enter a of inflection for our industry. ”
