Primo Ventures announces the first closing of Primo Climate, a venture capital fund that will invest in early-stage climate-tech start-ups to accelerate the ecological transition.
The Fund starts with an endowment of more than EUR 40 million, subscribed by CDP Venture Capital on behalf of the VenturItaly Fund of Funds and the Green Transition Fund – PNRR, which uses resources allocated by the EU through the NextGeneration EU initiative and aims to stimulate the growth of an innovation ecosystem in green transition sectors.
The collection target of First Climate is EUR 60 million. Management of the Fund is entrusted to the three new partners of Primo Ventures: Ezio Ravaccia, CFO of Solar Ventures, Giusy Cannone, former CEO of Fashion Tech Accelerator and Venture Partner in TLF ventures, and Simone Molteni, scientific director and member of the Board of Directors of LifeGate, one of Europe’s leading experts on decarbonisation and founder of the Impatto Zero project adopted by over two thousand companies. The managers bring 75 cumulative years of direct investment and sustainability experience to the Fund.
The Primo Climate team (pictured) comments in a note: ‘Worldwide, since 2022, for every four dollars of venture capital invested, more than one dollar has gone to climate change technologies. This is over 50 billion dollars, a sum that has grown 24 times in 10 years and will revolutionise the current technological landscape. Participating as a protagonist in this industrial revolution represents an unmissable opportunity for the Italian and European economy of tomorrow. Our vision is a long-term one: there are Italian stories that need to be properly supported and financed, this is the role of Primo Climate. Scouting activities are ongoing, we have already met with hundreds of realities, and we expect to announce the first investments in the second half of the year.”
“The investment in Primo Climate reflects CDP Venture Capital’s long-term commitment to fostering the development of sustainable technologies and solutions capable of addressing the environmental challenges of our time,” says Agostino Scornajenchi, Managing Director and CEO of CDP Venture Capital. In this closing, we channelled the resources of our VenturItaly Fund of Funds, but also of the Green Transition Fund, created to manage the PNRR resources allocated by NextGeneration EU with the aim of stimulating the growth of an innovation ecosystem in the energy transition sectors’.
Primo Climate can count on a strong partnership with LifeGate, a benefit company recognised as a benchmark for sustainability in Italy, which translates into advisory and support activities for the Fund. Primo Ventures and LifeGate also intend to develop a detailed methodology to accurately calculate and report on emission reductions.
Tackling climate change and promoting environmental sustainability are pressing challenges that require the pro-active involvement of every stakeholder concerned. The World Fund estimates that USD 100 to 150 trillion are needed to achieve net zero by 2050. However, capital alone will not be enough; we need to accelerate the development of emerging technologies and make recent climate-tech innovations more accessible in order to achieve our goals. As the World Green Development Report suggests, investing in innovative solutions will be crucial to complete the transition to a low-carbon economy in a timely manner.
Primo Climate therefore aims to seize this opportunity by investing in companies ready to scale up their solutions to accelerate the ecological transition. From established sectors such as solar energy, alternative mobility and lithium-ion batteries, to emerging verticals such as green hydrogen, renewable energy and geothermal solutions, the Fund is strategically positioned to identify and invest in cutting-edge companies committed to adaptation and mitigation goals.
In line with Primo Ventures’ commitment, the Fund ranks ex. Article 8 under the European SFDR, with the commitment to promote the UN Sustainable Development Goals. In particular, the Fund places a strong emphasis on goal number 13, ‘Acting for the Climate’, further emphasising its dedication to the ecological transition.
The Fund aims to support 10-13 companies that develop and produce cutting-edge climate technology or products and services that enable such technologies. Primo Climate will operate in several areas, including energy efficiency and renewables, mobility, circular economy, waste management and energy storage.
The Fund’s activities will focus on Italy, contributing to the country’s national resilience and international prominence in the field of sustainability.
Gianluca Dettori, President of Primo Ventures concludes ‘We are proud to announce the expansion of our independent platform dedicated to technology investments with the launch of our fourth vertical dedicated to climate tech. Climate change is a complex challenge, and we are happy to be able to contribute to adaptation and mitigation efforts to accelerate the achievement of sustainable goals crucial to our future. We firmly believe that the climate tech sector is fundamental for the economic development of our country and we will work to invest in Italian companies with cutting-edge solutions that create jobs and contribute to the economic growth of our peninsula’.
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