Chemicals company SABIC, oil and gas conglomerate Royal Dutch Shell and a third, unnamed European industrial group have joined Canada-based venture capital firm Chrysalix Energy Venture Capital’s CELP III Fund as limited partners, the firm disclosed on Thursday.
The firms join a host of LPs already involved in the fund including BASF, Citigroup, Credit Suisse, Mitsubishi and Total. The news came as business data source Bloomberg New Energy Finance named Chrysalix as the most active global cleantech VC firm in 2011.
Gerald Schotman, chief technology officer of Royal Dutch Shell, said: "When choosing a venture capital collaboration, the quality of their alternative energy deal flow is critical to us. Chrysalix meets exactly this. This collaboration underpins our commitment to drive innovation, leveraging the full variety of funding mechanisms."
Hans Kolnaar, managing director of SABIC Ventures, added: "Chrysalix’s unique industry knowledge, experience, and track record was the deciding factor for us to invest in them."