Money moves
Decarbonization tech startup with Houston office scores $20M from United, Microsoft, and others
Climatech company Dimensional Energy, which operates a Houston office, has scooped up $20 million in series A funding.
Founded in 2014, Ithaca, New York-based Dimensional Energy specializes in producing decarbonization technology, sustainable aviation fuel, and carbon emissions-derived fuels and materials. South Korea’s Envisioning Partners led the round, with participation from investors such as:
- United Airlines’ Sustainable Flight Fund
- Microsoft’s Climate Innovation Fund
- RockCreek Group’s Smart Aviation Futures fund
- DSC Investment
- Delek US
- Empire State Development
- Climate Tech Circle
The company also says it’s working toward becoming a certified B Corporation. Businesses that achieve this certification seek to balance purpose and profit.
Dimensional Energy says the $20 million funding round positions it for “significant growth,” enabling it to:
- Build the world’s first advanced power-to-liquid fuel plant and continue developing commercial power-to-liquid fuel plants.
- Roll out the company’s initial B2B and B2C products, such as a fossil-free surf wax and a cruelty-free fat alternative for vegan food manufacturers.
- Evolve the company’s proprietary reactor and catalyst technologies, which are being tested at its pilot plant in Tucson, Arizona.
“The world needs immediate and rapid decarbonization across all sectors, and Dimensional Energy shows great promise as a cleaner and lower-carbon aviation solution alongside reductions in industrial emissions,” Brandon Middaugh, senior director of Microsoft’s Climate Innovation Fund, says in a news release.
Dimensional Energy’s technology transforms carbon dioxide emissions into sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), renewable diesel, and synthetic paraffin that can be refined into more than 6,000 everyday products.
“Dimensional Energy particularly stood out to us for their differentiated technology, exceptional team, and significant progress to date towards producing SAF and other industrial products from CO2,” says Justin Heyman, managing director at RockCreek. “This technology can significantly reduce the environmental footprint of the airline industry.”
Pieremanuele Canepa, Robert Welch assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at UH, is leading a research project that can change the effectiveness of sodium-ion batteries. Photo courtesy of UH