Madrid investment firm Seaya has closed Seaya Andromeda — the first Article 9 climate-tech fund based in Southern Europe — at €300 million. 

The new fund’s LPs include Iberdrola, Nortia, Santander, BNP Paribas Group, Next Tech Fund, and Bpifrance. It brings Seaya platform’s total AUM to over €650m, making the firm the largest VC investor in Spain.

Seaya, with twelve years of experience in climate tech, has set up Andromeda to invest in impact-driven growth companies specialising in energy transition, decarbonisation, sustainable food value chain, and circular economy. 

The fund only invests in companies that promote a sustainable society by reducing waste and pollution. The fund subscribes to SFDR’s Article 9, which ensures that all investments the firm makes have a positive impact on society or the environment.

What SFDR Article 9 means in practice

SFDR Article 9 categorises financial products in the EU with sustainability as their main goal. These “dark green” funds aim for positive environmental or social impact and have the strictest sustainability requirements. They must invest primarily for sustainability, thoroughly disclose their approach, and potentially align with the EU’s green activity classification system.

While some Article 9 funds focus on broad ESG factors, a significant portion target specific social or environmental issues, and these impact-oriented funds often come with higher fees.

Seaya has already made its first five investments from the fund into a range of impact technology companies, including

Recycleye an AI-driven robot which sorts recyclable waste, and 011h, an environmentally friendly construction firm which reduces building-site CO2 emissions by 75 per cent.

Seaya’s new fund will invest anywhere between €7 to 40 million as a first cheque, and will retain capital for follow-ons. It plans to make 25 investments in total between now and the end of 2027, including around five more deals this year.

Seaya is one of few female-founded venture capital firms in Europe – launched in 2013 by former private equity investor Beatriz González.

Beatriz González, Founder and Managing Partner of Seaya, says;

“From day one we were focused on impact and climate. We have a strong technological background in this space. We started in 2012 backing climate tech companies and have successfully guided three of them right through to exit. 

We have 12 years of experience in this space and we can bring this knowledge and expertise to founders through this specialised vehicle.”

Pablo Pedrejón and Carlos Fisch lead Andromeda as Investment Partners. The fund has four verticals when it comes to investing:

• Energy transition
• Decarbonisation
• Sustainable food value chain
• Circular economy

Pablo Pedrejón, partner at Seaya, says: 

“Deep-tech climate entrepreneurs face a unique set of challenges compared to software-tech entrepreneurs. Climate-tech companies must translate research into a working product, bring it to market, and then scale it.

This long journey requires different kinds of support than what is typically provided to software startups. This is why there is a need for Series B and B+ investors that help climate tech startups bridge the ‘valley of death’ – the gap from initial development to deployment at scale.”

Lead image: Beatriz González, Founder and Managing Partner of Seaya, Photo: uncredited.