Calgary nanofiber developer closes C$6mn financing round
Calgary-based Carbonova, which is developing technology to convert greenhouse gas emissions into sustainable carbon products, said March 13 it had closed its SAFE equity financing in an oversubscribed round with C$6mn raised.
Net proceeds from the finance will advance Carbonova’s strategy towards building Canada’s first commercial demonstration nanofibers unit.
The financing round was led by Korea’s Kolon Industries, a multi-billion-dollar conglomerate interested in Carbonova’s technology applications in Asia, including for batteries, plastics and other materials. NGIF Capital also participated in the financing round, as did Carbonova’s directors, management team and staff.
The financing round adds to a C$2.5mn contribution from Sustainable Development Technology Canada and the National Research Council of Canada in February 2023.
“Carbonova's vision is to create everyday essentials from everyday emissions for everyone on earth, and with this financing, we are on track to complete the design of our first-of-a-kind commercial demo unit to put our vision into action," Carbonova CEO Mina Zarabian said. “We have investors and customers from the wide spectrum of the carbon value chain validating the strong pull from the market for transitioning to this recycling of carbon to enhance the building blocks of virtually everything in modern society.”
Carbonova currently produces carbon nanomaterials for customers at a pilot facility at the company’s headquarters in Calgary. The commercial demonstration expansion, which will produce “multiple hundreds of kilograms” of nanomaterials each day, will result in unit production cost efficiencies and is forecast to reduce the CO2 footprint of the carbon nanomaterials to below net-zero, the company said.