freshly funded

2 Houston companies invest in innovative carbon-converting tech from Rice University

Ontario-based Universal Matter has fresh funding from Houston. Photo via universalmatter.com

A Canadian company based on tech originating out of Rice University closed an equity financing round of up to $20 million thanks to two Houston-based companies.

NewTech Investment Holdings and Westlake Innovations Inc. led Universal Matter's investment round, which the company expand its graphene-based dispersion capacity technology that can be used for servicing customers and prospective customers in its target markets.

“Our continuing interest at NewTech is to seek out and invest in advanced materials companies having high potential to deliver disruptive technologies and environmental benefits within the cleantech sector,” NewTech Investment Holdings Managing Director Guy Hoffman says in a news release. “Universal Matter stands out with its game-changing graphene manufacturing process for producing high quality products that help reduce the carbon footprint in hard- to-abate sectors, such as cement concrete and bitumen asphalt-based applications.

Universal Matter's Flash Joule Heating process technology — originating out of Rice University's James Tour lab by scientist Duy Luong — can upcycle carbon into fully formulated graphene-based products to enhance the performance and sustainability of major industrial materials, per the company's release. Universal Matter developed the complementary product technologies with its Genable graphene-based dispersions that equate to ease-of-use by fabricators in major global markets that include cement/concrete, bitumen asphalt, industrial coatings, automotive tires, and others.

“Graphene is a material with a number of potential performance and sustainability benefits that could apply across a number of Westlake’s ‘Performance & Essential Materials and Housing & Infrastructure Products’ business lines,” Westlake's Senior Vice President and Managing Director John Chao says in the release. “We look forward to working with Universal Matter and its management team as it moves forward on development and commercialization of its flexible technology.”

This year, Universal Matter participated in the Greentown Go Make program put on by Greentown Labs and Shell. During the program, Universal Matter worked with Shell to identify eight potential collaboration areas across upstream carbon feedstocks, downstream end-use applications for the startup’s graphene, and more.

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A View From HETI

Catalyze has secured an $85 million tax equity investment to support the construction and completion of 75 megawatts of solar projects nationwide in 2025. Photo courtesy of Catalyze

Houston-based Catalyze, a developer of independent power systems, announced it has secured an $85 million tax equity investment from RBC Community Investments.

“RBC’s investment in this portfolio demonstrates our commitment to advancing clean energy solutions within local communities,” Jonathan Cheng, managing director at RBC, said in a news release. “We are excited to partner with Catalyze on the strategic deployment of these and future projects.”

The financing will go toward the construction and completion of 75 megawatts of commercial and industrial solar projects nationwide in 2025. Catalyze’s current generation portfolio now totals 300 megawatts of projects in operations and construction.

The transaction will help Catalyze’s existing relationship with RBC, which demonstrates a commitment to advancing renewable energy solutions at scale.

“RBC is a valued financing partner, and we are pleased to further expand our relationship with this latest investment,” Jared Haines, CEO of Catalyze, said in a news release. “This financing enables us to further our mission to bring scalable distributed generation projects to businesses and communities nationwide.”

Catalyze also has other private equity sponsors in EnCap Investments and Actis.

Last May, Catalyze announced that it secured $100 million in financing from NY Green Bank to support a 79-megawatt portfolio of community distributed generation solar projects across New York state.

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