Sorin Grama

Last week, I had the pleasure of moderating a discussion on navigating FOAK in climate tech at the Greentown Labs Summit in Boston (which had >600 people!!). Here’s a quick rundown of what was shared by Katherine St. James of Spring Lane Capital, Paris Smalls, PhD of Eden GeoPower, and Hannah Friedman of Planeteer Capital: 🌱 What is the definition of FOAK? We discussed how the term can be controversial - it's almost too general because it doesn't identify what kind of "First" FOAK refers to - first team project? First geography? First of a technology in a sector? First time for the integration of a system? It's also too specific because it has the word "first" in it, which can be anathema to later stage / project finance investors. 💰 Partnerships for Funding FOAK Projects We discussed how important it is to build a blended capital stack & use off-balance sheet capital for a project so you're not using the most expensive equity dollars to fund an infrastructure project with low-ish IRR. We also talked through being creative about using corporate partners to provide in-kind services or ink some agreement (at least an LOI) to attract this funding. 🏛 Role of Government We talked about how government capital is seen by investors & how it can be catalytic for FOAK. Government capital can provide validation that a startup has passed a rigorous diligence process by a third party - and incentives like grants or credits can help improve returns for the first project- but it's important to be doing this in conjunction with getting customer validation and to be able to present line of sight to competitive economics without concessionary capital. 👥 Advice for FOAK startups The panelists offered some very specific pieces of advice for startups going through FOAK: how to get creative with things like revenue sharing agreements or convertible notes, getting smart with project development early on (like with DeveloperU), being careful about using FOAK too liberally with certain investor groups, getting the right commercialization / FOAK talent in and around you early Huge thanks to the panelists and the team at Greentown Labs (Jill Kirkpatrick, Julia Travaglini, Aisling Carlson, etc you rocked it!!) for hosting this discussion on bridging the FOAK gap. Also immensely enjoyed the rest of the agenda. Check out the full recap & videos here: https://lnkd.in/d9ApYe9Y #ClimateTech #FOAK #ClimateFinance #ProjectDevelopment #GreenTech #CleanEnergy

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Data from the International Energy Agency (IEA) illustrates the current "readiness" of #ClimateTechs + their potential impact on carbon reduction. As shown, many techs are at an early stage of being able to have a material impact. Concerningly, some tech funds recently returned capital back to investors recently + closed their funds - citing inability to fund capital intensive techs, found in areas like ClimateTech. This in part may be contributing to the $2 trillion shortfall in ClimateTech, that Deloitte estimates. What this may mean for the future? - The migration of LPs to global, super VC funds within ClimateTech, given the large capital pools needed to fund tech development - Greater specialization from smaller funds, energizing more niche elements of the ClimateTech market - but also altering their / LP's risk profile - A greater role to be played by debt financing in funding growth entities at an earlier stage - impacting cashflow dynamics Will be an interesting space to watch moving forward. We at The Proptech Connection are constantly working with all parts of the Proptech ecosystem. From the leading LPs, funds, techs and adopters in market, providing an independent view. Reach out to us today to find out how we can help. #InvestorTrends #Strategy #Global Ivo van Breukelen Stuart Daun Kiki C. Ethan Ward

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Today I want to put the spotlight on Arelys Sosa, Thomas Tingelöf and Kent Moore who are the amazing founders of DREV.🔦 The problem they are tackling is that battery gigafactories, semi-conductor factories, and battery recycling plants face big challenges collecting hazardous metal micro-particles, slowing production, and they are squandering precious materials, and endangering staff. These are all individually big problems and combined this is huge.☣️ Drev has the solution to all to this with The Vault, an innovative technology powered by patent-pending dry brush technology and a revolutionary canister design, eliminates water and chemicals from the cleaning process, improves safety, and enables the adaptive reuse of valuable materials that would otherwise be thrown away with save manufactures millons. 🧹 The Drev team has the unique domain experience for solving a particular problem that we're always looking for when we are backing founders at the Norrsken Accelerator. Arelys is an industrial engineer who was part of the original team at Panasonic Energy at Tesla’s Gigafactory 1 so she has seen this problem first hand for years. Thomas has a PhD and he has been the CTO of PowerCell and VP at Volvo Cars and has massively scaled technologies before.🤩 The interest from the industry is huge and they are currently running projects with some of the leading battery manufacturers. You can read more and contact them here: https://lnkd.in/d7V-mKrx

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The Grid: Not as Sexy as #Solar Panels, But Way More Important (Especially During #IPL Season) Let’s face it, folks. When it comes to #clean #energy, everyone’s fawning over shiny #solarpanel and #windmill, but without a robust #grid, all that #green #energy is useless. Imagine the grid as the silent hero of the #cleanenergy story. It’s the invisible backbone that carries #electricity from all those far-flung solar farms and windswept deserts to #power your fridge, #AC, and that #data center that’s churning out the latest cat videos. Experts love talking about generating clean energy, but what they often forget is the massive investment needed in the grid itself. Think of it this way: for every #rupee you spend on that fancy new solar panel, you have to spend another 90 paise on the grid to get that power where it needs to go. Right now, the world’s only spending about 50 paise. It is not exactly a winning formula. The west has a huge challenge: building new #transmission lines is a messy business. People get NIMBY (Not In My Backyard) about giant towers marching through their fields. Plus, getting permits across state lines can be like pulling teeth. The end result? A backlog of clean energy projects waiting to connect to the grid—enough to power a small country! So, what’s the solution for nations like us? Well, for starters, we need to loosen the purse strings and #invest in the grid. Oman’s got the right idea, selling part of its transmission network to a big #Chinese company (uh oh, maybe not!). Maybe we can ask Mukesh Bhai to set up “#Reliance Grid"—an IPL sponsorship deal included, of course. Naam bhi badhiya hai! The point is that clean energy is a great first step, but it’s only half the story. #India need a strong, reliable grid to make it all work. India’s #electric grid faces challenges in keeping up with growing #demand and integrating #renewable energy sources. Here are some ideas: Smart Grid Technologies: Implementing #smart meters and #digital substations can improve grid monitoring and optimize #power flow. This can reduce transmission losses and improve overall #efficiency. Grid Strengthening: Upgrading aging #infrastructure like transformers and transmission lines is crucial. Expanding the grid network, particularly in #rural areas, is important. Energy Storage: Integrating #battery storage systems can help manage the variability of renewable energy sources like solar and #wind. Demand-Side Management: Encouraging consumers to adopt time-of-day pricing plans and smart appliances can help shift electricity usage away from peak hours. The grid is the unsung hero that keeps the lights on, the AC humming, and the IPL matches watchable. And that’s something worth celebrating, even if it’s not quite as flashy as a solar panel.

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Yesterday, our portfolio company, LineVision, announced the operationalization of LineVision's Dynamic Line Rating project with National Grid NY. This marks the single largest implementation of a #technology (#climatech) that can help operators determine in real time how much #power they can safely put through their lines leading to a more #efficient and more #reliable #grid - allowing #utilities to build a smarter grid; a grid that can welcome more #renewablepower sources faster! Congratulations to the people and teams at LineVision and National Grid! #decarbonization #gigacorn #electricity Kevin Kimsa Lilliana Paoletti Hudson Gilmer See the comments below for a link to the PR and launch video.

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Yesterday, the DOE released its latest lift-off report on advanced grid technologies – it’s a fascinating and compelling read with some surprising and powerful take-aways. I’m summarizing the highlights here, but I would definitely recommend at least checking out the executive summary for its clarity and conviction. You can access the report here: https://lnkd.in/gMuFwx3c Highlights and key take aways: We all know the grid is experiencing an unprecedented increase in demand: data centers, AI, electric cars and the broader shift to electrify everything is expected to drive 91GW of peak demand growth in the next decade. This risks reversing so many recent decarbonization gains if the default response is to build new gas peaker plants and defer shuttering of existing coal generation. As laid out by the DOE, multiple grid solutions that are commercially available TODAY could increase effective transmission & distribution capacity by 20-100 GW, in other words, potentially allowing us to fully meet the coming surge in demand without the need for new generation capacity These solutions can be deployed in UNDER 3-5 YEARS and at LOWER COST and GREATER VALUE than conventional approaches. The types of technologies being described here fall into four categories: 1) Advanced transmission (e.g., high voltage direct current); 2) Situational awareness and system automation (e.g., advanced distribution management systems); 3.) Grid enhancing technologies (e.g., virtual power plants); and 4) Foundational systems (e.g., system digitization). Sadly, though not surprising, the report also finds “adoption at scale and associated industry know how is lagging largely due to a lack of industry incentives and prioritization” In other words, even though investing in these available technologies is cheaper and more effective than sticking with the status quo, its not happening. The report powerfully reminds us: “ The mandate of the United States electric grid and of its operators is to provide safe, reliable, and affordable power to customers.” And "The U.S. transmission and distribution grid requires significant investment to address these accelerating trends and pressures." In this moment of disruption, utilities, regulators and grid operators have such incredible power to support and accelerate the green transition; not just in the fight against climate change, but simply to move us toward a more dynamic, resilient and cost effective grid. In the past, when demand was flat, incremental, risk averse, business-as-usual approaches to infrastructure and capacity investment maybe could work; but in a moment where the future looks nothing like the past, actual long term, system-level strategic planning and innovation is needed. From interconnection fees to cost-plus payor rates, its time for us to cast off the vestiges of last century's model of centralized generation and distribution, and embrace a new identity for utilities in the 21st century.

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Excellent blog post on the realities of Climate & VC. While these are "tough times for the transition," there are also many opportunities. Significant capital will continue to flow, with Corporate VCs playing a larger role in financing this transition. Through this process, they will strengthen their LP positions in funds tackling climate challenges. I receive weekly calls from large Holding & Corporate VCs seeking introductions to Climate / Energy / Infra VC Funds. When I ask about their target sub-verticals within Climate / Energy, they often mention that they default to focusing on specific regions due to limited resources and coverage. In other words, rather than evaluating whether a DACH VC is better positioned for solar or grid-tech compared to a Nordic or US VC, they simply pursue whichever regions they can access—a haphazard approach at best. I always advise LPs to evaluate VCs within their operating market context. Since sourcing is crucial in venture capital, Holding Cos. and Family Offices should carefully assess a VC's location, regulatory context, and market environment before investing and building a portfolio of Funds. I've heard "I wish I had discovered this VC / region sooner" far too many times... * At ComposeVC's Built World Fund, we do not invest in Climatetech or Energytech directly, only as it relates to our Built World thesis.

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🚀 Form Energy's Iron-Air Batteries: Pioneering Long-Duration Energy Storage ⚡🔋 Last week was the SOSV Climate Summit and one theme that stood out was the decarbonization of the grid. I was fascinated to learn about the work being done around long duration storage solutions (100+ hours) necessary to provide base load assurance given the intermittency of renewable sources like wind and solar. Whilst there are a number of different technologies in the mix from pumped hydro storage, thermal energy storage and gravity energy storage, on the battery front, Form Energy and it's iron-air solution seems to be pulling ahead. The core of the iron-air battery is its electrochemical redox cycle, utilizing iron oxidation during discharge to produce iron oxide (rust), and reversing the reaction during charge to regenerate metallic iron. This process allows the system to store energy for up to 100 to 150 hours, addressing multi-day intermittency in renewable generation. Some of the other advantages of the technology are as follows: 💰 Cost-Effective: Targets a $20 per kWh cost, significantly lower than conventional lithium-ion batteries, enabling affordable large-scale deployment. 🌍 Environmentally Friendly: Utilizes abundant, non-toxic materials (iron, water, air), reducing reliance on rare or hazardous materials, with a lower environmental impact. 🔒 Safe and Non-Flammable: Employs a water-based, non-flammable electrolyte, reducing the risks associated with thermal runaway, a common concern with lithium-ion batteries. 📈 Scalable and Modular: The modular design allows flexible deployment from small projects to large-scale, utility-grade storage solutions, making it adaptable to various grid needs. Form Energy has secured over $1.2 billion in capital since its founding, enabling rapid scaling and innovation. The company’s most recent Series F funding round in October 2024 raised a substantial $405 million, led by major investors like TPG Rise Climate, GE Vernova, Breakthrough Energy and Energy Impact Partners. This latest round will support the development of their manufacturing facility in Weirton, West Virginia, where Form Energy will repurpose a former steel mill into a production hub for its iron-air batteries. I would recommend the following podcast if you want to lean more. And Latitude Media and Canary Media Inc. for the best up-to-date reporting on transition related topics. https://lnkd.in/gmCR5prN

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🚀 While the world grapples with access to baseload energy for compute, we've been proud to watch 8090 Industries portfolio founders Hannan P. and Jack Abraham of Exowatt quietly build. 🤯 Today, Exowatt unleashes a new dawn for the energy industry with unveiling P3s - with the ability to generate electricity at scale at just a $0.04 LCOE and with entirely baseload renewable tech. That’s lower than the cost of most fossil fuels and doesn’t account for subsidies. The company has already amassed a 1.2 GW backlog, worth $Billions from mega tech hyperscalers, energy giants and data center companies. Renewable energy can power the data centers of the AI era, and Exowatt founders Jack Abraham and Hannan P. are building that future. We're honored to be backing Exowatt alongside Sam Altman, Andreessen Horowitz, Felicis, Atomic, Overmatch Ventures and Climate Capital. Read more about their launch today here: https://lnkd.in/gZDKZdk8 cc Kerem Ozmen Wes Mendenhall Filip Vurdelja Haluk Sabanci Dincer Grant Brown Ishan Meswani Garuth A. Andrew Irwin Shilpa Patel

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#WaterTech is underinvested and has a lot of great opportunities. We had a great panel on this topic with the founder and CFO of Focal Technologies Eric Steinmeyer as panelists, thanks to the introduction of Brian Kerns. Check it out here: https://lnkd.in/g3skgt_s ​Now we might ask more questions for firsthand market insights, and evaluate an opportunity to participate in Focal. ​ 📘 Focal Technologies - Their Ray System is a waste remediation game-changer. Our trailer-mounted eight-foot Ray® System uses a patented refracting lens to concentrate the sun’s energy and break down any organic contaminant in water or soil. 2024 is a breakout year. Focal plans to have 12 Ray units delivered in 2024, at a price of approximately $250,000 each, which does not include recurring revenue for each unit post-delivery or our leasing model approach revenue streams. ​ 💲 Focal was backed by 36 investors including E8 Angels cleantech angel group members, SWAN Impact Network, VertueLab, an Investors Circle member, and several family offices. Focal has made exciting progress since then, 2024 will be a breakout year for the company. This current raise offers a bridge note (~50% filled), which will close before the end of May. Valuation is still attractive now, but not after this round. The ACA leadership and Director of VectorPoint Ventures - Don Megrath - is their CFO. 📢 Global League will host a Q&A meeting on May 17 for a deeper dive with the founding team of Focal Technologies, this is our free community service for supporting important impact. 📢 Sign up: https://lu.ma/FocalQnA　 ​Global League  (G-L.Ventures) is a platform and network for collaboration between investors to help the most impactful startups recommended by investors. Our newsletters:　https://lnkd.in/gpaSHMEj

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'Drill, baby, drill' isn't just for oil and gas - it could unlock geothermal energy and geologic hydrogen too. That's the fascinating paradox of climate tech I discussed in a recent TechCrunch feature examining how VCs are viewing the sector's future. The reality is that policy impacts are rarely straightforward - deregulation of drilling and permitting, such as for overhauls in transmission and distribution, could actually accelerate clean energy solutions. Furthermore, the sector has shown remarkable resilience through multiple administrations and market cycles. The core message I shared with Tim De Chant and Rebecca Szkutak rings true: technological advancement and declining cost curves will keep driving solutions forward, regardless of the political situation. The energy landscape continually presents new opportunities at every turn. Worth a read for anyone interested in the exciting future of climatetech investing. https://lnkd.in/gjNdm4DW #ClimateInnovation #VentureCapital #Geothermal #GeologicHydrogen

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🙌 Huge congrats to portfolio company Emidat for closing their $4M seed round, led by General Catalyst, with participation of BOOOM💥 , Auxxo Female Catalyst Fund, Übermorgen Ventures, and incredible angels. With NP-Hard Ventures we're proud to double down! 🌍 Construction and real estate amount for around 40% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Emidat has built a software platform for automating the generation of validated Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) certificates for this sector. Basically, they help the construction industry understand their environmental impact and support them in reducing it. 👩‍🚒 The speed of execution of this team is incredible. Lisa Oberaigner & Florian Fesch started Emidat a bit over a year ago, and already have 25 customers who have used or are using its platform for some 350 construction plans. Their database of materials contains information on over 150,000 construction products, spanning 13 product categories so far. But it’s just getting started. Thanks for having us on your journey! NP-Hard Ventures // Paul Veugen, Micha Hernandez van Leuffen // Melissa van den Brink - Romero More on TechCrunch: https://lnkd.in/ezctG2GU

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Is SF Climate Week banter a good barometer of the macro climate tech investment mood? Key nuggets to ponder: 💰💰💰 Climate solutions (like most science/engineering and hardware based deep tech) are capital intensive. They require an "all of the above", creative financing approach to obtain the capital needed to scale (from CVCs, government, public-private partnerships, green banks, debt financing...). 🤖 AI - Everything, Everywhere (all at once). As in most sectors, AI is white hot. It can be a key component of climate solutions, but also a demand accelerant ⏩ More AI = ↗ compute and power demand ⚡= ↗ need for energy storage and grid enhancing solutions 🔋. 🏛 🤵 Political Angst. Real worry that a new administration will cut or impede climate tech catalyzing funding (e.g., DOE funding from IRA). #climatetech #climateweek

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I've been thinking a lot about waves 🌊 . In climate tech, we've experienced two significant waves so far. The first wave was dominated by hardware innovations—solar panels, wind turbines, etc. The second wave ushered in the power of software, optimizing energy use and enhancing efficiency through intelligent grids and AI. Now, we're witnessing the emergence of a third wave, where the lines between hardware and software blur and the problems addressed are far more intersectional. This wave will be focused on bringing those who've been invisible to the broader climate movement front and centre. This 3rd wave will be rooted in the following principles - 📍Partnership - organisations who may not seem like obvious allies working together. 📍Inclusion - Brining those previously invisible to the wider climate movement through the creation of ventures, tools and new platforms. 📍Activism—This wave will have politics at its heart. You can't tackle the impact of climate change without an understanding of the political and economic history that brought us here. 📍Wealth Creation - Always there but rarely mentioned. How do we create sustainable ways to allow communities to build wealth in this new net-zero world? Jobs, skills, investment...everything will be on the table. News All links in the comments 👇 🚨 The Rockefeller Foundation creates a new Climate Advisory Council 📂 Halfway to COP29 Azerbaijan: What is the Bonn Climate Change Conference and why does it matter? 🎬 Climate Innovation Ecosystem by Forbes With 46% of the solutions we need still under development or need to be built, we need innovation in business models and sales strategies, advocacy, education, policy development, and community building, among other areas. 💡 Unibloom raises £650K in Pre-Seed funding - Unibloom offers a cloud-based, data-driven platform that automates, simulates, scenario plans and integrates climate projects with business forecasts and financial targets. 👋 Innovate UK Horizon Europe Missions webinar: Climate change adaptation and smart cities opportunities (webinar) ☎️ Climate Connection Tech Collab - When: Wednesday 26 June, 6-9pm in London. A night to celebrate climate innovators & changemakers hosted by Sustainable Ventures and Climate Connection! ✍️ The 2024 Climate Tech Report by StartUs Insights provides an in-depth analysis of the sector’s current landscape, showcasing key trends, and providing market dynamics. This report explores the performance of emerging startups and innovations driving the industry towards sustainability. #climatechange #justtransition #netzero

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In his #EEI2024 keynote, Founder and CEO Jensen Huang described how #AI will transform the U.S. power grid by enabling #utilities to improve energy efficiency, reduce operating costs, and advance clean #energy. Read the blog. https://bit.ly/3WrLswz

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With NYC pushing for renewable energy adoption and decarbonization, battery storage plays a key role in balancing supply and demand. Safe battery systems are necessary to ensure reliability, as failures can disrupt energy supply or damage the grid, leading to blackouts or instability in critical infrastructure. You will learn from Anthony Santamaria and Paul Rogers at Decarb NY on Jan. 15th! Register in the comments! #batterysafety #compliance #NYC #batterystorage

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UK curtailed (wasted) energy from wind by year: 2020: 3.5 TWh 2021: 2.4 TWh 2022: 3.4 TWh Thats enough energy to power several million tons of Direct Air Capture in the UK per year. Without changing actual electricity supply on the grid. Just sayin' #renewables #directaircapture #dac #wind #curtailment

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Heirloom Carbon raises $150M to remove CO2 from the air using rocks | TechCrunch https://buff.ly/49uuPFv Heirloom Carbon has successfully secured $150 million in funding to advance their innovative carbon dioxide removal technology, which captures CO2 from the atmosphere using mineral-based processes. By utilizing naturally occurring rocks, Heirloom aims to address climate change by sequestering carbon more effectively and sustainably. This substantial investment highlights the growing interest and urgency in developing scalable carbon capture solutions to mitigate global warming. #CarbonCapture #ClimateTech

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