Madrid-based Seaya has closed its latest climate tech fund at €300m, bringing its assets under management to €650m and making it the largest venture firm in Spain. Seaya has previously backed the likes of delivery app Glovo, EV charging startup Wallbox and transportation provider Cabify.
The fund, Seaya Andromeda, was launched in 2022. It’ll invest €7m-40m as a first cheque and retain capital for follow-ons. The fund will invest in companies that are either reducing waste or greenhouse gas emissions.
Seaya, which was set up in 2013 by former private equity investor Beatriz González, has closed five funds. Three are focused on sector-agnostic early-stage investments, one is the climate tech-focused Andromeda fund and the other is a Latin America-focused fund.
Southern Europe’s climate tech potential
Pablo Pedrejón, investment partner at Seaya, says the fund is looking at energy transition technologies, zero emissions mobility, tech to decarbonise industry and real estate, circular economy solutions, agritech and foodtech.
Southern Europe doesn’t typically attract as much climate tech investment as places like the Nordics, but Pedrejón says there are a number of areas in which the region can excel.
“Southern Europe has the most sunlight hours across Europe, making the region fertile for accelerated renewable adoption,” he says. Spanish energy firm Iberdrola is one of the LPs in Seaya’s new fund, expertise Pedrejón says it can leverage when looking at energy-related opportunities.
Spain has a strong automotive industry — it’s the second largest automaker in Europe, according to the Spanish Association of Automobile and Truck Manufacturers. Pedrejón says there are opportunities for companies to help make that industry more efficient and to reduce the waste it produces.
He also points to real estate — which contributes 10.6% of Spain’s GDP — as an area where the country can contribute to climate tech development.
“Spain has exported construction expertise through leading global companies such as ACS and Sacyr,” he says, adding that this means the country has expertise to help mitigate the sector’s significant emissions.
Seaya’s Andromeda fund has already backed five companies, including Recycleye, which has built a robot that sorts recycling waste, and 011h, a construction company focused on green building. The fund plans to make 25 investments by the end of 2027.
Who are the LPs?
LPs in the newly closed Andromeda fund include:
- Spanish energy company Iberdrola
- Wealth management platform Nortia
- Spain-headquartered bank Santander
- French bank BNP Paribas Group
- Next-Tech Fund, a Spanish state fund
- French state bank Bpifrance
Read the orginal article: https://sifted.eu/articles/seaya-ventures-climate-tech/
