Belfast-based Nuada has secured €2.5m in funding from the EIC Accelerator, the first Northern Ireland based company to get funding from the prestigious innovation programme.
The carbon capture technology specialist focuses on decarbonising sectors such as cement, lime, steel and energy from waste, by capturing direct carbon emissions during the manufacturing process.
The Queen’s University Belfast spinout’s technology works with a class of nanomaterials known as metal organic frameworks (MOFs) – crystalline, sponge-like materials that are highly porous and can store, separate and capture specific gases. These nanomaterials can be used to create filters for potentially harmful emissions from industries such as cement, steel and the waste-to-energy sector, releasing the captured CO2 through pressure instead of heat.
The EIC Accelerator provides support to start-ups and SMEs that have innovative products, services or business models that could create new markets or disrupt existing ones in Europe and worldwide.
Nuada was chosen from more than 1,200 proposals submitted throughout Europe for the funding, with 71 making it to the final funding stage, and only five from the UK.
“The award from the EIC Accelerator is another stamp of approval for Nuada’s technology and our potential to disrupt and advance industrial decarbonisation,” said Jose Casaban, co-CEO of Nuada. “It was a highly competitive process, so being selected as one of only a handful of UK companies and the first in Northern Ireland to secure the award is very rewarding for our team of experts and fuels our mission to commercialise critical technology for decarbonising industry.”
The Queen’s University Belfast spinout’s technology works with a class of nanomaterials known as metal organic frameworks (MOFs) – crystalline, sponge-like materials that are highly porous and can store, separate and capture specific gases. These nanomaterials can be used to create filters for potentially harmful emissions from industries such as cement, steel and the waste-to-energy sector, releasing the captured CO2 through pressure instead of heat.
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Nuada has also been awarded an additional €2.2 million from another EU programme to fund the growth of its carbon capture technology, and has been backed by equity investor BGF with a £3.4 million investment in 2023 and a £4.5m investment co-led by the Clean Growth Fund and Barclays.
It has two capture plants on the ground in Europe and has agreed partnerships with global companies that include cement companies, a US lime producer and a UK energy-from-waste company.
“The time to impact the market transition phase of the UK’s CCUS vision is now. The energy intensity and equipment costs of the incumbent processes are just not sustainable to growth. The current expenditure levels and liabilities associated with these traditional capture solutions risk the pace and scale of the Government’s ambitions,” said Conor Hamill, co-CEO of Nuada. “Next generation capture technologies like Nuada’s are directly addressing these adoption barriers, and scaling new capture platforms will unlock the transition of Government from funder to enabler.”
