The hydrogen plateau and IRA funding crutch | Equity Podcast
27 Sep 2024 (2 months ago)
Toyota Ventures and Climate Tech Investments
- Toyota Ventures, with over $800 million in assets under management, has a climate fund of $300 million focused on seed to Series A investments. (1m10s)
- AM Batteries, a Toyota Ventures portfolio company, has developed a dry electrode manufacturing process that reduces energy consumption, capital expenditure, and cell costs. (4m27s)
- Eco Electro, another Toyota Ventures portfolio company, utilizes anion exchange membrane technology in their electrolyzers to produce green hydrogen with high efficiency. (6m23s)
Hydrogen Fuel Challenges
- Battery technology is not currently viable for large vehicles like trucks due to size and weight constraints, making hydrogen a promising alternative for these vehicles. (7m16s)
- A significant challenge for hydrogen fuel is the lack of infrastructure for its distribution, making it difficult and expensive to transport. (7m55s)
- While the Inflation Reduction Act has incentivized domestic electric vehicle and battery production, it has not had the same effect on hydrogen, with private investment remaining stagnant due to a lack of demand signaling and many investors already having allocated funds to hydrogen projects. (9m11s)
Methane Innovation and Venture Capital
- Methane is a more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide, leading to increased activity in methane-related innovation and venture capital. (13m37s)
- Allora is a company developing ocean agriculture technology, aiming to cultivate crops like rice on the ocean's surface to reduce methane emissions from traditional rice cultivation. (16m1s)
Impact of the Inflation Reduction Act on Climate Tech
- The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) has the potential to significantly impact early-stage climate tech companies, but these companies should prioritize achieving profitability without relying solely on IRA funding. (17m45s)
- Venture capitalist firms do not base startup valuations on potential funding from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) because it is not sustainable. (19m37s)