California startup Twelve – formerly Opus 12 – has received $57m in a round of Series A funding for its technology, which captures and transforms carbon dioxide emissions into materials that traditionally use fossil fuels.
A self-proclaimed ‘carbon transformation’ company, Twelve uses electrolysis to turn CO2 into a petrochemical alternative – with applications in products ranging from feedstocks for decarbonising laundry detergent, to the foam used in sneakers.
According to its website, Twelve’s technology ‘combines a new class of CO2-reducing catalysts with a novel device that splits CO2’ – with the only inputs being water and renewable electricity.
It has previously received support from major companies such as Mercedez-Benz and NASA, who are already using the proprietary technology. The firm has also received investment from the Microsoft Climate Innovation Fund, oil major Shell, and through the Echoing Green fellowship.
The latest round of funding was led by two Venture Capitals; Capricorn Technology Impact Fund and Carbon Direct Capital Management.
In a press release, Carbon Direct CEO Jonathan Goldberg said “Carbon Direct’s mission is to accelerate the carbon management ecosystem by providing both scientific advisory and financial capital. Twelve’s pioneering electrolysis technology has the potential to reshape the procurement of specialty chemicals and fuels.”
“Carbon Direct Capital Management is excited to support…the Twelve team at this exciting stage of the company’s growth,” he added.
In the same release, Twelve Co-Founder and Chief Science Officer Dr. Etosha Cave said the new round of funding would be used to scale up the technology and bring it closer to widespread commercialisation.
“This new funding is taking Twelve to a critical inflection point where we can scale our technology to any capacity or customer application, and to suit any product demand,” Cave says. “Businesses can use CO2Made materials to deliver the same performance, safety and efficacy standards that traditional materials offer, while achieving their climate goals.”
Twelve estimates its tech could address up to 10% of total global emissions, and up to 50% of ‘difficult to decarbonise’ industrial emissions. The company is reportedly taking pre-orders for its industrial-scale carbon transformation module.
