A continued focus on sustainability and ESG - Q&A with Jane Ge, Managing Partner at Vectors Capital
In the run up to SuperReturn Energy next week, hear from Jane Ge, Managing Partner at Vectors Capital on the viability of sustainability, public-private partnerships and the role of corporate venture partnerships with venture firms.
Q: Are investors right to be concerned about the viability of sustainability?
A: No. Ultimately, every industry and every company is subject to the effects of climate change; therefore requiring some form of sustainable solutions that are relevant to them. Whether it's supply chain risk due to increased occurrences of extreme weather events, new energy efficient processes and equipment to lower energy consumption (be it via electricity or heat), or things as small as building efficiency upgrades to office buildings to reduce overhead costs, there is a component for everyone to be a participant.
We have seen major corporates taking responsibilities and pleading for net zero targets. This is an important trend that is really driving demand for many of new climate technologies. The low carbon business itself is booming. It is a multi-trillion dollar business opportunity in the next upcoming decades to come. As corporates, you either seek change and embrace the opportunity now, or you become obsolete and be replaced by your competitors. Or, your customers will go for your competitors if you are not doing your part as a part of climate change.
In identifying specific niches or applications in the market, new companies will be built to solve a multitude of challenges impact each sector. At Vectors Capital, we seek to make an impact for B2B industrial solutions that impact the physical world, having made investments in low-emissivity windows and methanol/ammonia production to decarbonize maritime transportation.
Public-Private Partnerships
Q: How do you see capital-intensive technologies achieving venture-backable returns in DeepTech?
A: Solutions at the intersection of climate and DeepTech often require blended forms of capital across the capital stack in order to generate outsized returns while underwriting the technical risk and capital intensive. To do so, we seek out companies who can leverage private-public partnerships, particularly non-dilutive funding opportunities, to increase the amount of available capital for technical and scalability de-risking, giving start-ups a fighting chance while putting private capital to use for company building and operations.
The Role of Corporate Venture Partnerships with Venture Firms
Q: How do you decrease scalability risk for start-ups working in sustainability?
A; In order for Venture Capital to work for these hardware start-ups, there needs to be a guarantee of offtake contracts with partners that can help scale the technology. This role can be filled by Corporate Venture Capital funds that identify potential technology prospects for the parent company, and start-ups can leverage the incumbents' resources in order to scale into the market quicker with a partner that can be a first partner, putting skin in the game with their capital and resources. At Vectors Capital, we work with CVC and corporate partners to identify pathways for our portfolio companies to enter the market quicker, validate the technology for where it can be fully integrated, or drop-in, to existing processes, and provide expertise to complement a start-ups team.
About Vectors Capital
Vectors Capital is an early-stage venture capital fund accelerating low-carbon solutions to market by creating pathways for US and European start-ups to expand globally into new markets. Vectors team has an unique access to Southeast Asia that can help start-up companies’ manufacturing/scale up, and additionally can help Southeast Asia countries to build a low carbon economy.
In order to achieve net-zero, solutions must be globally applicable in order to reach the highest potential to mitigate the worlds carbon emissions; however, most start-ups are unable to reach this potential due to lack of knowledge and partnerships internationally.
Want to get more insights from Jane Ge? Secure your spot at SuperReturn Energy and join her session!