UP Catalyst, a Tallinn-based firm specialising in reworking industrial CO2 emissions into regionally produced crucial uncooked supplies, has secured an €18 million mortgage from the European Funding Financial institution (EIB).
This financing is essential for scaling up the molten salt electrolysis course of, enabling the utilisation of CO2 in bigger volumes to supply high-performance supplies for batteries, defence tools, paints, coatings, polymers, and concrete. UP Catalyst course of reportedly requires much less power than conventional fossil-based alternate options.
“Securing EIB’s financing is essential milestone for UP Catalyst because it immediately helps the corporate’s strategic mission to deal with the rising deficit of graphite – a crucial uncooked materials within the EU, the US, Korea and Japan,” stated UP Catalyst Chief Govt Officer Rait Maasikas. “Working with the EIB not solely validates our revolutionary expertise and native manufacturing capabilities but in addition indicators to the market that UP Catalyst is on the forefront of strengthening the resilience of EU industries and manufacturing within the transition to a extra unbiased product provide chain.”
Based in 2019, UP Catalyst transforms industrial CO2 emissions into value aggressive, high-quality and energy-efficient graphite and carbon nanotubes for electrical automobile batteries and a spread of different purposes, together with paints and coatings, polymers and concrete.
In 2024, the corporate opened their very own in-house product testing and validation, and a brand new manufacturing facility for carbon supplies in Estonia. In accordance with the corporate, they’ve achieved the bottom carbon footprint for carbon nanotubes and one of many lowest for battery-grade graphite, as verified by its cradle-to-gate Life Cycle Evaluation (LCA).
UP Catalyst goals to transform 1 / 4 of one million tons of CO2 into carbon-neutral uncooked supplies by 2030. In March 2025, the corporate was chosen as a strategic undertaking companion by the European Fee below the Essential Uncooked Supplies Act (CRMA).
In accordance with figures offered to EU-Startups, the worldwide graphite provide hole is projected to succeed in almost 800,000 metric tonnes by 2030. With Europe accounting for roughly 15% of that shortfall, UP Catalyst goals to produce as much as 50% of the area’s graphite demand hole by way of its deliberate scale-up.
“A key pillar for us is to finance revolutionary net-zero applied sciences that may assist to cut back hostile impression on our local weather and surroundings whereas strengthening Europe’s competitiveness,” stated EIB Vice-President Thomas Östros. “UP Catalyst embodies this imaginative and prescient by pioneering carbon seize and utilisation options which can be each revolutionary and impactful. We’re excited to assist them in scaling their operations and advancing sustainable applied sciences that can form the way forward for Europe’s inexperienced transition.”
The EIB funding, which takes the type of enterprise debt, might be used to advance the European Union’s targets of preventing local weather change, lowering import dependency and strengthening the superior manufacturing sector.
UP Catalyst has efficiently scaled its expertise from laboratory to industrial scale, with product efficiency being validated in large-scale battery cells utilizing GEN3alpha in 2025.
The corporate has additionally not too long ago confirmed that its graphite meets the standard requirements of fossil-based alternate options, highlighting its potential as an area and sustainable alternative within the power storage and defence industries.
With assist from the EIB, the corporate plans to additional increase manufacturing to 270 tonnes of carbon nanotubes and 1,350 tonnes of inexperienced graphite per yr by 2027 – a scale-up that can require the utilisation of roughly 6,000 tonnes of CO2 yearly.
The EIB assist is backed by the InvestEU initiative. The operation is a part of the EIB InvestEU Assure Settlement, specializing in sustainable crucial uncooked supplies. The EU prioritises these supplies to make sure a safe provide for its industries.
