France-based Accenta secures €108M to lead efforts in decarbonising building heating and cooling

France-based Accenta, a company that provides decarbonisation solutions to buildings, announced on Wednesday that it has secured €108M in funding. 

The company says the raised capital will help it become a leader in decarbonising building heating and cooling.

EREN Groupe, which acquired a stake in Accenta in 2019 and has since taken operational control of the company, backed the deal. The Siloé Infrastructures Fund, managed by Crédit Mutuel Impact, also participated in the fundraising.

“By increasing the capital of Accenta and ensuring the operational management of the company, we are significantly strengthening the solutions of the “decarbonisation of buildings” division of the Eren Group, which constitutes one of its main vectors of future growth and is also giving the company the means to offer its customers a financed turnkey offer,” explains Pâris Mouratoglou, President of Eren Groupe.

Accenta’s last funding round was in 2019, when it raised €4.7M from the venture capital fund Serena, EREN Groupe’s subsidiary EREN TES, and Bpifrance. The company then utilised the funds to accelerate technological development, strengthen research and development teams in the Saclay plateau and Paris, and expand sales.

Decarbonisation solutions from Accenta

According to Accenta, heating and cooling account for 75 per cent of CO2 from buildings when operational, producing approximately 10 per cent of global carbon emissions.

Since 2016, Accenta has aimed to deploy accessible low-carbon buildings by focusing on thermal decarbonisation and leveraging AI and data science.

As energy regulations continue to tighten, traditional thermal renovation methods are beginning to reveal their limitations in complexity and cost-effectiveness. In response to these challenges, Accenta has introduced a comprehensive solution to reduce energy consumption and promote carbon-free production.

As a product of the X-Novation Center at Ecole Polytechnique, all of the solutions offered by Accenta are made through a scientific approach. These include the design and construction of an energy infrastructure utilising geostorage, the utilisation of Artificial Intelligence to enhance carbon-free production, and the Energy Management services.

Geostorage is basically what its name suggests: keeping something in storage in the ground. This could be permanent storage of gases that are harming the environment but beneficial to store underground.

Accenta’s solutions can be deployed on all types of buildings, either new or existing. It is a one-stop shop for building owners to reduce energy consumption and carbon footprint by up to 80 per cent and 95 per cent, respectively.

To date, Accenta has deployed its solutions to more than 8 million square metres. It continues to grow rapidly, with revenue doubling annually since 2020. The company has over 150 employees and is actively hiring to support its operations.

The company’s solutions have attracted multiple companies and communities, such as AG2R, Eurovia, Fnac Darty, Icade, Prologis, Union Investment, and the city of Roubaix.

What the investors say

Benoit Herrmann, director of investments at Crédit Mutuel Impact on behalf of Siloé Infrastructures, says, “Accenta offers an offer that is both complete and unique, which goes as far as the deep decarbonisation of a site thanks to geostorage – at a competitive cost.”

“Accenta is able to commit to the performance of its solutions and take part of the investment risk, which makes the offer unparalleled,” adds Herrmann.