Amsterdam-based Brineworks, a company specialised in seawater electrolysis technology, announced on Thursday that it has secured $2.2M (approximately €2M) in funding led by VC firm Pale blue dot.
This latest investment will help the Dutch company accelerate its technical development and will be key to deploying its first technical pilot project.
“Current CO2 capture methods, whether from industrial sources or Direct Air Capture, are either not sustainable, too limited in scale, or too costly,” says Gudfinnur Sveinsson, CEO of Brineworks.
“Brineworks offers an alternative that is sustainable, scalable, and cost-effective, making e-fuel scale-up for the maritime and aviation industries a real possibility,” adds Sveinsson.
Brineworks: Developing seawater electrolysis technology
Founded by Gudfinnur Sveinsson and Dr. Joseph Perryman, Brineworks has developed seawater electrolysis technology that enables sustainable and affordable extraction of CO2 and H2 from the ocean.
Explaining the environmental impacts of Brineworks’ CO2 extraction to Silicon Canals, Gudfinnur Sveinsson, CEO of Brineworks, says, “Our method is sustainable, affordable, and scalable all at once — setting it apart from traditional approaches. We don’t compare ourselves to fossil fuels, as they belong to an era that’s ending. Instead, we look at other methods of sourcing CO2 for e-fuels — mainly CO2 from biomass, point-source capture, and Direct Air Capture (DAC).”
According to the company, the electrolyser provides a clean, decentralised, and self-sufficient energy solution. It can power engines without relying on the grid or being affected by geopolitical conflicts over fossil fuel supplies.
“Biomass-sourced CO2 can be a good option in many cases, but it doesn’t have the potential to scale to the levels needed for e-fuels. Point-source capture doesn’t work either, as it merely delays the release of CO2 from fossil sources and isn’t a long-term solution. Our main competition is Direct Air Capture, which, like our method, has low environmental impacts but has not yet proven economically viable,” adds Gudfinnur.
Currently, the industry standard for Direct Air Capture stands around $230 – $630 (approximately €210 to €570) per metric ton, according to the International Energy Agency.
However, with Brinework’s technology, this method is expected to cost under $100 per ton of CO2 at scale
“Based on our current system performance, we are already seeing a clear pathway for costs to fall below $100 (€90) per ton of CO2, when deployed at scale,” he adds.
Use cases of Brineworks’ tech
Through this technology, the Amsterdam-based company aims to achieve large-scale e-Fuel production and decarbonise highly emitting industries like maritime and aviation.
On using Brineworks’ technology in other industries, Gudfinnur adds, “Our technology can be used to produce feedstocks for a wide range of e-fuels, including those that can help decarbonise our energy grids (like e-methane) and fuels like methanol, which is widely used in the chemical industry.”
Challenges
According to Gudfinnur, the company has tackled several challenges since they are building a new electrolyser from the ground up.
“While I could list specific examples, that wouldn’t do justice to the team’s efforts. Over the last year, we’ve tackled hundreds of challenges to bring the electrolyser to its current state, undergoing several major design revisions along the way,” continuous Gudfinnur.
“We are fortunate to have highly motivated electrochemists and chemical engineers on our team, along with fantastic advisors who help us critically evaluate designs and troubleshoot when we hit a roadblock. It’s been a wild journey, and we’re prepared for that to continue,” he adds.
First pilot project
Further, the company is planning to deploy its first technical pilot project in Gran Canaria.
“The main obstacle at our labs in Amsterdam has simply been that we run out of seawater quickly. Our electrolyzer performs stably over long periods, but our limiting factor has been how much seawater we can physically move and store in the laboratory at any given time. We’re solving that here,” he reveals
“We’re partnering with the Technological Institute of the Canary Islands, specialists in seawater treatment, so our current technical pilot is located right on the beautiful south coast of Gran Canaria,” concludes Gudfinnur.
The investor
Pale blue dot is a seed-stage ClimateTech fund investing in startups that reduce and reverse the effects of climate change and prepare for a new world.
“What if any nation in the world could make sustainable oil from renewable electricity and seawater alone? We think Brineworks found the key to that,” says Hampus Jakobsson, General Partner at Pale blue dot.
01
Tech meets private credit: Demystifying Norsad Capital’s efficiency boost with PE Front Office