Climate tech company Newtrace has raised $5.65 million in seed funding, led by Sequoia Capital India and Aavishkaar Capital.
The round also saw participation from existing investors Speciale Invest and Micelio Fund along with Ashish Goel, founder-CEO of Urban Ladder, and IKP Knowledge Park.
Its proprietary, patent-pending electrolyzer technology is designed to obtain ultrapure hydrogen, with up to a 60 per cent reduction in overall production costs.
hydrogen production
Electrolyzers are devices that are key to the production of hydrogen and use electricity to split water into hydrogen and oxygen, after which hydrogen gas is collected and used for various industrial applications, the company said. The use of advanced manufacturing and a real-time analytics platform has made these devices a lucrative option for quick deployment and integration across industries.
“We are thrilled to secure this round of funding, which will enable us to scale our operations and meet the growing demand for our innovative electrolyzers,” said Prasanta Sarkar, CEO and co-founder, Newtrace.
The startup, which was established in 2021, says that it has scaled rapidly and aims to deploy its innovative electrolyzers in sectors such as refineries, fertilizers, chemicals, steel and cement, and transportation. It is now looking to expand its solution by providing technology for the long-term storage and conversion of green hydrogen and ammonia.
Climate change
“The threat of climate change looms large, and there is an urgent need to make concentrated efforts towards de-carbonization. Production of cost-effective and sustainable hydrogen has been identified as an enabler in the energy transition of hard-to-abate industries, and we see Newtrace as a critical player in shaping India’s emerging green hydrogen story,” said Anurag Agrawal, Partner, Aavishkaar Capital.
Additionally, it is estimated that investments for hydrogen technology deployment may hit $1.2 trillion by 2030 in order to achieve net zero emissions, representing a huge market opportunity for electrolyzers, the company said in a release.