Cleantech startup Furno, announced that it has raised $6.5 million in a seed funding round, with proceeds aimed at supporting the company’s solution to help decarbonize the cement industry.

Building materials are a key source of global greenhouse gas emissions. Cement production, an ingredient in concrete, accounts for approximately 8% of global carbon dioxide emissions, with over 900 kg of CO2 emissions generated for every 1000 kg of material produced.

Founded in 2020, California-based Furno enables the production of carbon neutral cement using novel combustion and kiln technology. The solution uses gas-based versus solid fuels, which the company said dramatically reduces CO2 emissions and completely eliminates nitrogen oxides (NOx) and sulfur oxides (SOx).

According to the company, the technology removes the need for large amounts of capital to build new cement plants as a key barrier to addressing the sector’s climate impact, by providing modular, carbon-neutral cement plants that are agile and can scale with demand.

Alongside the funding round, Furno also announced its cement production unit, the Furno Brick. The funding will enable the company to continue to scale its technology and aid in the development of the Furno Brick. The plant operates at greater than 80% thermal efficiency, doubling what standard cement plants are able to achieve, and helps mitigate the costs of building a new cement plant by enabling pre-fabrication and standardization, reducing production, installation and permitting expenses.

Furno said that the funding will help it scale its technology and provide more customers with samples to garner feedback and, as well as support the development of the Furno Brick.

Gurinder Nagra, Furno Founder and Chief Executive Officer said:

“At Furno, we have the ability to produce Ordinary Portland cement now, adapt to a range of gas-based fuels and materials innovations as they emerge and meet demand where it exists while still abiding by a shifting regulatory landscape. ​​Our mission is to go the distance by innovating at the heart of cement production and operating as a complement to other technological developments in the cement space.”

Furno’s oversubscribed round was led by Energy Capital Ventures (ECV) and joined by O’Shaughnessy Ventures, Cantos and Neotribe. Breakthrough Energy participated in earlier, non-dilutive funding of the company.

Vic Pascucci, Managing General Partner and Co-Founder of Energy Capital Ventures said:

“As part of our Green Molecules investment thesis, ECV analyzed all of the innovations relevant to the cement and concrete industry. It was immediately clear to us that Furno had the best team, technology, business model and competitive advantages. Furno’s game changing ‘mini-kiln’ innovation enables a level of decarbonization and market adoption that is in a class all of its own.”