Sequoia, Aavishkaar Capital lead $5.65M funding in Newtrace's green hydrogen solution

Climate technology startup Newtrace has secured $5.65 million in seed funding led by Sequoia Capital India and Aavishkaar Capital.

The round also saw participation from existing investors Speciale Invest and Micelio Fund, along with capital infusion from Ashish Goel, Founder and CEO of Urban Ladder, and IKP Knowledge Park.

The company's proprietary patent-pending electrolyzer technology is designed to produce ultrapure hydrogen while reducing overall production costs by up to 60%. Newtrace said it uses a combination of innovative fluid engineering technology and an enhanced electrocatalyst that does not rely on rare earth metals to achieve the feat.

An electrolyzer is a device or system that uses electrical energy to facilitate an electrolysis process. Electrolyzers are often used to produce hydrogen gas, which is considered a clean and sustainable energy carrier that can be used in various applications, including fuel cells and renewable energy storage.

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“The threat of climate change looms large and there is an urgent need to make concentrated efforts towards de-carbonisation," said Rochan Sinha, CTO and Co-founder, NewTrace. "Production of cost-effective and sustainable hydrogen has been identified as an enabler in the energy transition of hard-to-abate industries and we see Newtrace as a critical player in shaping India’s emerging Green Hydrogen story."

Newtrace said investments for hydrogen technology deployment must hit $1.2 trillion by 2030 in order to achieve net zero emissions, representing a huge market opportunity for electrolyzers.

“Newtrace is one of the most exciting companies in our Micelio fund portfolio. It is great to see the

amazing progress they have made in validating such a foundational technology to make green hydrogen a reality”, said Shreyas Shibulal, Founder, Micelio Mobility.

Speaking at an event on Tuesday G20 Sherpa and former Chairperson of NITI Ayog, emphasized the need for India to become a heavy weight in green hydrogen production by producing the cheapest green hydrogen in the world at $1 per Kilogram by 2030.