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Oct 21, 2024

Canada Growth Fund Invests $100 Million in Carbon Capture Solutions Provider Svante - ESG Today

Environment/ Government/ Investors Mark Segal August 16, 2024 Carbon capture and removal technology provider Svante announced an investment of up to USD$100 million from Canada’s government-backed

Environment/ Government/ Investors

Mark Segal August 16, 2024

Carbon capture and removal technology provider Svante announced an investment of up to USD$100 million from Canada’s government-backed Canada Growth Fund (CGF), with proceeds aimed at supporting the development of projects to address emissions in hard-to-abate industries in Canada and the U.S.

CGF commenced operations in 2023, capitalized with $15 billion for deployment over five years, aimed at helping develop a clean economy in Canada, and attracting private capital to help absorb risks and encourage investment in low carbon projects, technologies, businesses, and supply chains. The new announcement marks CGF’s seventh investment to date, with other investments including $200 million in Calgary-based carbon capture startup Entropy, $90 million in Calgary-based geothermal energy company Eavor Technologies, and up to $1 billion to develop carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) infrastructure on energy company Strathcona’s Saskatchewan and Alberta oil sands facilities.

Patrick Charbonneau, President and CEO of CGF Investment Management, said:

“CGF is working to accelerate the deployment of key Canadian carbon capture technologies, and to scale the manufacturing and export of promising solutions to showcase Canadian technologies internationally. Svante has a tremendous market opportunity, globally and here at home, and we look forward to supporting this company in its growth.”

Founded in 2007, Burnaby, British Columbia-based Svante provides structured adsorbent beds – or filters – and modular rotary contactor machines that capture and remove CO2 from industrial emissions, aimed at enabling emissions intensive industries to capture large-scale emissions from existing infrastructure. The company’s solutions are targeted at industrial decarbonization activities in areas such as hydrogen, pulp and paper, lime, cement, steel, aluminum, and chemicals, and the technology can also be used for Direct Air Capture (DAC) solutions.

The company is currently constructing a 141,000 square foot facility in Burnaby, which is anticipated to produce filters capable of capturing 10 million tonnes of CO2 annually.

According to CGF, the new investment will enable Svante to focus on its first-of-a-kind (FOAK) deployment opportunities, and will encourage the company to prioritize Canadian pipeline opportunities.

Claude Letourneau, Svante’s President and CEO, said:

“We are delighted with this investment by CGF. It is transformational for Svante and complements the US$145 million capital investment made in our new carbon capture and removal filter manufacturing facility under construction in Vancouver. This will strengthen our Integrated Project Development Services offering to help our customers de-risk FOAK projects by providing both our in-house project development advisory expertise and financing.”

The CGF investment is being made in the form of convertible notes, and will consist of two tranches, including an initial $50 million disbursement, and a second tranche of up to $50 million that can be drawn by Svante for the development and construction of carbon capture projects, with a focus on Canadian projects.

Canada’s Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, Jonathan Wilkinson, said:

“As we look to address the climate crisis, countries and companies that are thoughtful and strategic will look to seize the opportunities that a low-carbon future presents. Companies such as Svante are rapidly moving to use policy tools available to them to generate economic growth and create good jobs now and into the future.”