Climate Technology Industry

As COP30 enters its 2nd week, we launch the Allianz Green Transition Tracker 2025—a clear, data-driven view of global progress toward net zero, using a unique peer- and progress-scoring framework. Alongside the main report, we're also publishing detailed profiles for 69 countries worldwide. ⚠️ The global green transition is at a critical juncture. Despite a decade since the Paris Agreement, climate impacts are accelerating—2024 was the hottest year on record, with climate damages reaching $300bn and economic losses in the trillions. Current trends point to warming above +3°C by 2100. Keeping below 2°C will require rapid electrification, deep fossil-fuel cuts, and faster clean technology deployment. The decisions made at COP30 will be pivotal for the next decade. 📈 Progress is real, but investment gaps remain. Renewables overtook coal in global power production in early 2025, and low-carbon electricity capacity has grown by 53% since 2015. Clean energy is now cost-competitive: solar costs are down 87%, wind by up to 55%, and batteries by over 80%. Yet, despite $2.1trn invested, a $2.6trn annual mitigation gap remains through 2030. 🚦 Our Green Transition Tracker reveals both momentum and divergence. While many countries are advancing faster than expected, the gap between leaders and laggards is widening. Lower-income countries like Sri Lanka and Colombia perform well due to low per-capita emissions, while advanced economies such as Sweden, Denmark, and Switzerland lead in sustained decarbonization. Fossil-fuel-dependent nations continue to lag. ⏩ The pace of decarbonization is encouraging, but not enough. Fifteen countries have covered at least one-third of the journey to net zero, led by Luxembourg and Switzerland. Another 20—including Spain, Brazil, Poland, and Australia—have made notable progress, but momentum is still insufficient. Major emitters like the US and China, responsible for about 40% of global emissions, have shown only marginal improvement since 2015. 🌐 The global outcome will be shaped by a handful of major economies. China, the US, India, Europe, and Brazil together account for over 56% of global emissions. Decarbonizing these key players is essential to keeping global warming in check and advancing a low-carbon future. 🌱 #COP30 #GreenTransition #NetZero #ClimateAction #Sustainability #NZAOA #Ludonomics #AllianzTrade #Allianz

🌍 The new report “Delivering on the UAE Consensus: Tracking progress toward tripling renewable energy capacity and doubling energy efficiency by 2030” lays bare where the world stands two years after #COP28. Jointly prepared by International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), the #COP30 Presidency, and the Global Renewables Alliance (GRA), this second edition shows that the pace of #renewables addition continues to improve - 581.9 GW of renewables added in 2024, the highest ever — however, the world remains off track to triple global renewable energy capacity by 2030. Meanwhile, improvements in energy efficiency reached only 1%, far from the 4% annual target set in the #UAEConsensus. 💰 The Missing Links To deliver on both goals, global investment must reach USD 5 trillion per year through 2030. Yet, in 2024, flows to emerging and developing economies were only one-fifth of what’s needed. Infrastructure and grids are also lagging behind. Without stronger investment in flexibility, forecasting, and resilience, the clean energy revolution will stumble at the system level. 🌦️ As the report shows, achieving these goals isn’t just about building more renewables — it’s about managing variability and anticipating the weather and climate risks that affect every solar panel and wind turbine. The World Meteorological Organization plays a crucial enabling role: ✅ Providing accurate weather and climate data to power #AI-based forecasting for wind and solar generation. ✅ Supporting climate-informed planning for grid infrastructure and storage systems. ✅ Delivering early warnings and risk assessments that protect energy infrastructure from extreme weather and climate shocks. If #IRENA provides the map of the global energy transition, #WMO provides the real-time radar — guiding system operators safely through the turbulence of a changing climate. Tripling renewables and doubling efficiency are within reach, but only if we connect energy policy with climate intelligence. To achieve resilience, we must make climate data a strategic asset — embedded in every decision that shapes our energy future. https://lnkd.in/eYFTmhWb

The first half of 2024 saw a weak $11.3bn start, with investment finally returning to 2020 levels pre-climate tech hype. Over the past six months, the climate tech market has continued to constrict, with a noticeable downtick in deal count and funding in H1’24, affecting even early-stage investments like Seed and Series A. But it's not just climate tech, the broader venture market is in a slump from sticky inflation, high interest rates, and geopolitical turmoil. But it's not all doom and gloom. We’re also seeing signs that many companies and projects aren’t solely relying on VC funding anymore, as they’re starting to graduate from equity to project finance and debt in the race to deploy, deploy, deploy. Some new and interesting highlights here: 💰 H1’24 $11.3bn funding: Funding in the first six months of 2024 totaled $11.3bn, down 20% from H1’23 and down 41% from H2’23. 📈 Early-stage takes a hit: Seed funding declined 12% in H1’24 vs. H1’23, and Seed deal count decreased 30% for the same period for the first time. 💸 Round size: Average deal size for Seed, Series A, and Series B increased by 19%, signaling a flight to quality for performing companies making it past Series A. 📅 Time between rounds: The average time it takes a company to raise a Series B in 2024 is more than double the time it took three years ago, jumping from 11 months to 26 months between rounds ⛰ Series B Valley of Death: And the Valley of Death between Series A and Series B has become more precarious, as a large cohort of climate tech companies approach the milestone. 💥 Notable deals: The companies that were able to get funding this half-year represented many of this year’s emerging trends in climate tech: hype-y AI and the clean firm power it requires, high-flying Sustainable Aviation Fuels, and batteries leading the charge. Advanced geo developer Fervo Energy, thermal energy storage (TES) provider Antora Energy, and textile-to-textile recycler Syre raised massive rounds for hardware buildouts. Plus, steelmaker H2 Green Steel, lithium extractor Lilac Solutions, and Liquid Air Energy Storage (LAES) developer Highview Power all raised “FOAK” rounds to support commercial-scale project development. 👉 Check out the full Sightline Climate (CTVC) H1'2024 investment post with charts and analysis tracking investment, deal activity, FOAK deals, bankruptcies, time between rounds, and investor activity: https://lnkd.in/evG9_-_Y 👉 And read the key takes from Michelle Ma at Bloomberg Green: https://lnkd.in/er8pjdcd #climatetechvc #climatetech #funding

Two years ago, I called out the “finance for climate innovation” gap in then Commission President von der Leyen’s 2023 State of the Union speech. Last year, I called the "8x solutions from the Draghi Report" that addressed this. Today, reading the 2025 State of the Union and its 69-page progress document, I’ve checked back: how far has the EU come in implementing these eight #Draghi solutions to close that gap? 🌍 The good news: #climate and #energy targets and clean tech remain central in EU policy, with many new initiatives launched since 2023. ⚖️ The detail: while policy progress is visible, Europe’s machine is slow to deploy across Member States, and scaling innovation finance for private long-term investors, banks and insurers remains challenging. Here are my summary progress highlights against the eight 2024 calls: ✅ Horizon Europe "doubled" (€175bn will need ringfencing if it will survive). ✅ EIB stepping up with €70bn TechEU and cleantech guarantees. ✅ Renewables buildout advancing (solar on track, wind lagging). ✅ “Made in Europe” procurement criteria under the Clean Industrial Deal (possible double edged sword?). ✅ Critical Raw Materials Act implementing and designating 47 EU projects. Yet… ❌ ETS Revenues and the Innovation Fund can do more to support cleantech manufacturing. ❌ Funding architecture for industrial cleantech scale-ups remains fragmented leaving high hopes for Industrial Decarbonisation Bank and Decarbonisation Accelerator Act. 👉 Conclusion: Europe is directionally good, but the pace, detail and transparency of new finance tools will determine if we truly bridge the innovation gap and scale cleantech at home. Progress achieved (2/8): "Doubling" Horizon Europe; more clean tech guarantees and funding vehicles from the EU and EIB. Priorities in motion (4/8): Renewables buildout, Lead Market creation, InvestEU extension via ECF (more size needed), Critical Raw Materials strategy underway. Still MIA (2/8): Dedicated ETS revenues for cleantech manufacturing; more targeted Innovation Fund deployment. Overall: #Climate and #cleantech are central in EU #strategy, but delivery and up-scaling of public-private #finance instruments remains the execution challenge. Please read the article below, as this post-summary doesn't do it justice !!

This week, the Global CCS Institute released its annual Global Status of CCS Report — and the numbers are seriously encouraging: As of July this year, 77 commercial CCS projects are in operation — that’s a 54% jump from last year — capturing a total of 64 million tonnes of CO₂ per year, up 25% year-on-year. Another 47 facilities (with 44 Mtpa of capture capacity) are currently under construction, plus 600+ publicly announced projects in various stages of development. And that doesn’t even count the many private projects still under wraps. I always enjoy seeing the figure that tracks CCS projects over time — it includes some I’ve followed since my own research days — and it really tells a story. You can spot the momentum after the 2010 COP in Copenhagen, when projects started appearing beyond North America and Norway. Then came the dip in 2015, when the UK government pulled £1 billion in CCS funding, shelving the Peterhead and White Rose projects. After hitting bottom in 2017, the revival began — led by Norway’s Northern Lights/Longship Project, followed by the UK’s Cluster Sequencing Programme. The boost in 2022 from the enhanced 45Q tax credit in Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act is also clear in the data. Fast forward to today, and the sector looks to be in great shape. This August saw successful CO₂ injection and storage at Northern Lights — the world’s first open-access CO₂ transport and storage facility. On top of that, FIDs were announced last month for Heidelberg Materials’ Padeswood CCS and Encyclis’ Protos ERF projects in the UK. By 2030, the Global CCS Institute projects global capacity to reach 337 Mtpa. That’s still only about 4% of the 8.7 Gt per year the IPCC says we’ll need by 2050 — a long way to go, but the trajectory is promising. In the U.S., CCS incentives remain mostly intact under Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill, continuing to drive projects forward. And across Europe (and the UK), policy measures like ETS allowance reductions, the Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA), and the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) are helping make projects viable. Step by step, global policy and industry are aligning to make large-scale CCS proliferation a reality — exciting times for those of us who’ve been engaged in this space for years. #Decarbonisation #EnergyTransition #CCUS

The world's first climate progress review sets firm deadlines where diplomacy failed. The Global Stocktake (GST) is the Paris Agreement's assessment mechanism to measure collective progress toward climate goals. Acting on a 5-year cycle, it gathers data, conducts technical analysis, and drives political decisions to enhance climate action on parties' next round of climate commitments (NDCs). The first GST was completed at COP28 UAE in 2023 The first GST review established concrete targets: global emissions must decrease by 43% by 2030 and 60% by 2035 compared to 2019. This timeline gives governments and businesses clear interim milestones for reaching net-zero CO2 by 2050. The process showed specific gaps in implementation: adaptation efforts remain localized and fragmented, financial flows aren't reaching developing countries effectively, and capacity building needs strengthening at all levels. Climate resilient development requires better coordination across these areas. The next GST in 2028 will operate under new frameworks: mandatory Biennial Transparency Reports from all countries, standardized adaptation indicators, and clear finance tracking mechanisms. This data infrastructure aims to tighten the link between technical assessment and policy decisions. And it's all very needed. Kudos to Harald Winkler from the University of Cape Town and Farhan Akhtar from the U.S. Department of State.

The newest episode of "The Green Blueprint" is out. I loved this conversation between Lara Pierpoint and Douglas Chan. It offers a candid look at the challenges and opportunities of scaling direct-air capture. As the industry moves from demonstration to commercial deployment, a few key insights from Climeworks stand out: Strategic site selection: The intersection of clean power and storage geology proves critical for DAC economics. Iceland's case study demonstrates how access to carbon-free energy and suitable storage formations can dramatically impact project viability. Manufacturing & design evolution: The industry is learning valuable lessons about modularity and mass production. The progression from custom-built units to standardized, repeatable designs highlights a crucial shift toward manufacturability -- a key factor for cost reduction and scale-up potential. Project Finance: DAC projects are pioneering new financing approaches by: - Securing offtake contracts during construction - Blending public funding with private capital - Testing various project finance structures as facilities reach commercial scale Market reality check: Challenges center on demand creation. While voluntary markets provide early momentum, the industry recognizes that compliance markets and policy support will likely be crucial for achieving gigaton scale. This suggests the need for parallel tracks of market development. Scaling considerations: The path from thousands to millions of tons of annual capacity raises important questions: - How to optimize between plant size and geographic distribution - The role of modular design in risk management - Balance between standardization and site-specific optimization I couldn't recommend this podcast more! It's such a helpful breakdown of how companies are navigating the path to commercialization for a wide range of climate technologies. Subscribe!

🌱 Climate Tech Trends of 2024: A Pivotal Year of Transformation and Resilience 🌍 As 2024 comes to a close, the climate tech ecosystem reveals a more reserved venture landscape. This was particularly felt in the "Valley of Death," the relative lack of funding available for Series A/B rounds (especially for first-of-a-kind, "FOAK" technologies) -- tech often too expensive and high-risk for VCs but also too experimental (and too high-risk) for PE. The Valley of Death intensified this year, with only 10% of deals at Series B stage. (That being said, there are great funds uniquely dedicated to climate tech at these critical stages, and CVCs like Woven Capital, Toyota's Growth Fund tend to fund later stages, so hope remains!) 1. The Climate Tech Funding Landscape According to PwC's State of Climate Tech 2024 report, global climate tech investments decreased by $23 billion globally, shrinking from $79 billion in late 2023 to $56 billion by Q3 2024. This decline in venture funding reflects the broader VC trend of decreased capital flowing into startups across all industries, a steady decrease since the 2021 peak. 2. Financing Dynamics The PwC Climate Tech Report highlights the following critical transformation in funding structures: - Hybrid capital models now constitute 42% of climate tech financing -- reflecting increased diversification in capital stacks. - Non-dilutive funding (grants, government incentives) increased to 23% of total investments. - Longer times between rounds: median funding rounds extended to 22 months between raises, compared to 16 months in 2022. 3. Tech Trends Renewable Energy Innovations - Energy tech remained strong (the most-invested-in climate tech vertical), increasing to 35% of total funding - Solar efficiency reached 30.2% in commercial panels (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) - Long-duration energy storage costs decreased by 37% year-over-year (International Energy Agency (IEA) Global Energy Report) Industrial Decarbonization Milestones - Green hydrogen production costs dropped to $1.87/kg in select markets (International Hydrogen Council) Carbon capture technologies now achieve 92% capture rates at commercial scale (Global CCS Institute) Impacts of AI - AI climate tech saw and increase of >2x -- rising to 14.6% in 2024 from 7.5% in 2023. Top verticals include autonomous vehicles, smart energy systems, and agricultural innovations. - Key areas to watch in 2025 are AI applications to EVs -- and EV venture funding, given the uncertainty of the IRA as we head into the new U.S. political administration -- as well as power grid stability in the global south. 4. Climate Tech Investment Sector Breakdown by Geography North America: 45% ($35.3B) Europe: 32% ($25.1B) Asia-Pacific: 20% ($15.7B) Rest of World: 3% ($2.3B) Check out the PwC report here: https://lnkd.in/dYVY-K9s. #ClimateTech #VentureCapital #Sustainability #ClimateInnovation