NZ startup Vertus Energy scores pre-seed funding for its beyond biogas technology

October 27, 2021 |

In New Zealand, climate tech startup Vertus Energy has raised $862,429 in a pre-seed funding round led by Icehouse Ventures with support from Outset Ventures, Startmate, and NOAB Ventures, to expand its green fuel production technology.

Vertus Energy’s technology turbocharges the production of green fuel from waste, making the de-fossilization of heavy pollutant industries that is urgently needed to fight climate change more achievable and affordable.

The company’s BRIO technology processes waste three times faster and produces 60% more energy than any other system on the market. The technology sits inside an anaerobic digester, which converts the methane released from sludge, manure and other organic waste into renewable energy.

To date, there have been marginal improvements with anaerobic digester systems, with their slow processing times, low methane yield (50%), and high operating costs limiting their potential for replacing fossil gas at scale. Vertus’ breakthrough BRIO technology represents a major advance in biofuel production, with a 80% methane yield, resulting in a considerably more powerful energy source. The technology is also adaptable to multiple waste streams, and highly resistant to contaminants.

The new funds will enable Vertus Energy to expand its field pilots, with its first BRIO demonstration plant scheduled to be operational on a South Auckland farm early next year. An independent research institute will be engaged to review and validate the BRIO technology ahead of securing local customers.

Category: Fuels

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