Suzano Ventures allocates US$6.7 million to British battery manufacturing startup
The first contribution of Suzano's corporate venture capital will leverage Allotrope Energy's technology based on biomaterials
As the first contribution since its launch in June 2022, Suzano Ventures, Suzano’s corporate venture capital, announced this week it has made an investment of up to US$6.7 million in the British battery manufacturing startup, Allotrope Energy. This is the US$70 million corporate venture capital fund’s first investment following its launch last year by Suzano, the world’s largest hardwood pulp producer.
Allotrope Energy is the developer of an agile high-rate carbon technology that can help unlock a new family of ultra-fast charging lithium-carbon and lithium-ion capacitor batteries.
The innovation developed by the startup have the potential to transform a range of industries, from mobility to aerospace and robotics, and can reach full charge in similar time to fueling an internal combustion engine vehicle, without the safety hazards associated with other lithium-ion technologies.
Allotrope Energy’s battery technology can be made using carbon extracted from an abundant biomaterial co-product of Suzano’s own production process of creating pulp from sustainably sourced wood. In addition to being ultra-fast charging batteries, they do not require the use of materials such as cobalt, nickel and rare earth metals, where shortages have been impacting global supply chains and increasing costs.
Beyond the investment and supply of biomaterials, Suzano and Allotrope Energy will enter into a broader partnership agreement. Under the potential arrangement, Suzano’s teams in Brazil and Canada will support innovation and commercialization of the technology, as well as developing global supply chains and markets for the batteries.
“At Suzano Ventures, our focus is on finding deep tech startups that can build a circular and regenerative economy through the innovative production and use of biomaterials. We are excited that our first investment is into a company can harness a co-product from our own pulp production process as a key raw material, to help accelerate the global transition to zero emission mobility,” said Paula Puzzi, Manager of Suzano Ventures.
“This significant investment is the pivotal step in demonstrating the immense opportunity in combining Suzano’s sustainable, natural resource and Allotrope’s agile high-rate carbon technology. Working with Suzano we get access to a critical raw material that is sustainably produced, alongside the commercial and technical expertise and global reach from working with a major multinational business,” added Peter Wilson, CEO of Allotrope Energy.
