Sustainable mining technology company Ceibo announced that it has raised more than $30 million at the close of its Series B financing round, with proceeds aimed at accelerating its leaching process to extract copper more economically and sustainably.

Copper is one of the key materials needed to support the transition to a low-carbon economy, with demand expected to rise over the next several years as energy, transportation and industrial systems shift heavily towards electrification, increasing the need for sustainable and economical extraction methods.

Santiao, Chile-based Ceibo provides a leaching process that can increase the production of copper, while reducing water use and environmental impact of extraction. Leaching is one of the most sustainable copper recovery technologies, but historically was inefficient for copper found deeper in the earth, where most reserves are located, and which typically use water and energy intensive concentration and smelting processes. Ceibo’s process enables leaching to be used for reserves where the process could not normally be applied. The process was designed for easy integration into operations, and uses existing infrastructure at mines.

The financing was led by energy transition-focused venture capital investor Energy Impact Partners, and included participation from a mining-focused investors including CoTec Holding, Audley Capital, Orion Industrial Ventures, Unearth Capital and Opalton, as well as existing investors Khosla Ventures and Aurus Ventures.

At the closing of the round, Ceibo announced that BHP Ventures, the dedicated venture capital unit of mining giant BHP, has joined as an investor as well.

Cristóbal Undurraga, Ceibo CEO and Co-founder, said:

“This capital increase, together with the strategic support of investors like BHP Ventures, will help us accelerate plans to deploy our technology globally and meet society’s needs.”