Eyal Ofer's Zodiac Maritime has participated in the latest round of fundraising by Belgian-based hydrogen energy start-up Tree Energy Solutions.
The company, which is led by former Snam chief executive Marco Alvera, raised €65m ($66.6m) from investors which also included HSBC, UniCredit and German utility Eon.
Proceeds from the raise will be used to accelerate the development of TES’ proprietary circular carbon economy model for the hydrogen market
TES said this was its second round of fundraising in a move it hopes will bring it closer to reaching a final investment decision (FID) by the end of 2023.
The company is now said to be worth in the region of €700m, according to two people familiar with the matter, the Financial Times reported.
“Our sustainable business model has attracted the interest of world-class industrial and financial players, demonstrating the growing appetite for renewable natural gas. TES is now further progressing to become an agent of change, driving this revolution,” said Alvera.
Daniel Ofer, CEO of Zodiac Maritime, said: “Zodiac Maritime and OG Energy are excited to be founding investors in TES Energy. We look forward to scaling hydrogen as a green and sustainable energy source for the future.”
Tree Energy Solutions is currently developing a green energy hub at the German port of Wilhelmshaven, with plans to supply 250Twh of green gas annually, with a strategy to develop similar hubs in other European ports to offer affordable green hydrogen, gas and power.
TES’s project involves introducing a circular carbon economy to the hydrogen market by using “cutting-edge technologies” to combine hydrogen with CO2 to produce synthetic methane.
The company will import green hydrogen and synthetic methane from countries with “renewable rich energy generation” in order to help diversify Europe’s energy supply.
TES said existing pipeline infrastructure can facilitate the cost-effective delivery to end users.
The company said it is already scaling up the production of 5.5m tonnes of reliable on-demand green hydrogen in its European Green Energy Hub at Wilhelmshaven.
TES said it is also developing additional energy supply and import hubs in Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Middle East, Canada and the US.
MW&L Capital Partners acted as exclusive financial advisor and placement agent to TES, while Burggraaf & Hoekstra acted as legal advisor.
Zodiac Maritime declined to comment further on Monday when contacted by TradeWinds.
