Sofi Filtration, a women-led Espoo-based CleanTech company developing ultrasound-based water filtration technology, has raised a €900k investment from EIT RawMaterials to accelerate industrial pilots, international expansion, and continued development and validation of the technology.
The investment includes €600k under the EIT RawMaterials ‘ERMA Booster’ programme and €300k under its ‘Fast Track’ programme. EIT RawMaterials provides additional startup support services, including entrepreneurship coaching, financial and management advisory services.
“We are grateful for the commitment of EIT RawMaterials, whose backing allows us to take giant leaps in commercialisation,” says Riina Salmimies, CEO, Sofi Filtration. “With this support, we are strengthening our team, building partnerships, and preparing to expand into new markets – from Europe to Türkiye, and soon to North America.”
In 2025, other European CleanTech and critical-raw-materials startups have also attracted external capital – for instance, Resilico raised €5 million to transform industrial waste into secondary raw materials for construction. UP Catalyst secured €18 million to scale up its process for producing battery-grade graphite and carbon nanotubes from CO₂ emissions.
In this landscape, Sofi Filtration’s €900K injection – while numerically smaller – is strategically significant: it supports industrial pilots, international expansion from Europe to Türkiye and potentially North America, and continued development and validation of its ultrasound-based filtration technology tailored to mining side-streams.
Compared with larger peers such as Resilico and UP Catalyst, Sofi’s raise underscores a more targeted, proof-of-concept and market-entry stage rather than a broad-scale rollout.
Taken together, the publicly disclosed 2025 funding in this segment – roughly €30 million including Sofi’s round – signals a moderate but real flow of investment into European ventures focused on resource efficiency, waste valorisation, and critical raw-materials resilience.
As a Finnish company, Sofi Filtration stands out within this cohort, addressing circular-economy challenges from a Nordic perspective.
Bernd Schäfer, CEO, Managing Director, EIT RawMaterials, adds: “Europe cannot afford to waste what it needs to win. As an innovation impact investor, EIT RawMaterials backs technology pioneers like Sofi Filtration. Sofi’s technology turns wastewater into critical mineral supply – accelerating circularity, reducing water use, and strengthening Europe’s security of supply for critical raw materials.”
Founded in 2011, Sofi Filtration is a water technology company providing ultra-fine particle filtration for mineral recovery and cleaning industrial process waters – helping industries maximise resource efficiency, minimise waste, and contribute to a more sustainable future.
Their current offering is built on the success of Sofi Prima, their fine particle filtration solution.
Their new business line is Sofi Alchemist. It leverages the proven technology platform of Sofi Prima to recover critical minerals from the side streams of mining concentration plants.
Sofi Alchemist filter system is reportedly the first in the world to combine ultrasound-powered self-cleaning with the ability to capture ultra-fine particles down to 0.3 μm. The technology enables up to 20% higher recovery of critical minerals from existing mines, supporting more sustainable resource use.
“This is how we accelerate European leadership – by investing in scalable solutions that move from pilot to impact. We are delighted to support the Sofi team’s growth and to continue delivering on our mandate to secure the critical raw materials Europe needs for competitiveness,” says Schäfer.
Proven in water treatment for over a decade in power plants, construction, and the pulp and paper industry, the technology is now being applied for the first time in mining, creating a new pathway to improve resource efficiency and reduce environmental impact in mining and processing industries.
A major milestone in Sofi Filtration’s scaling journey is the recent delivery of its system to Finnish battery chemicals producer Terrafame. The deployment enhances nickel sulphate production at the Sotkamo plant and demonstrates the technology’s value in strengthening Europe’s battery materials value chain.
The EIT RawMaterials investment builds on Sofi Filtration’s €1 million financing round completed earlier this year.
As the demand for critical raw materials surges to drive the green transition, Sofi Alchemist is ready to play a pivotal role in securing sustainable mineral supplies for the future.
Read the orginal article: https://www.eu-startups.com/2025/11/finnish-cleantech-startup-sofi-filtration-gains-e900k-boost-for-critical-mineral-recovery-technology/
