Icos Capital Management, a Netherlands-based independent venture capital firm, has closed its second fund with three Dutch companies and a local university as cornerstone limited partners.
The first closing of the estimated €25m ($34m) Icos Cleantech Early Stage Fund II will allow Icos to invest up to €2.5m in 10 cleantech companies in the energy, food, water, recycling and construction sectors.
The fund’s cornerstone limited partners are Netherlands-listed industrial companies Royal BAM Group, CSM and Imtech and Delft University of Technology (DUT).
CSM, Imtech and private company Farm Frites had provided the cornerstone investors in Icos’ first fund, Dutch Technology Fund I, which closed in 2006 before being renamed Icos Cleantech Fund (ICF) I. Farm Frites was unavailable as to why it decided against publicly reinvesting.
However, René van der Bruggen, chief executive of Imtech, said: "Our participation in ICF I helped us keep pace with innovations of strategic importance to our business. We are also involved in [the] implementation of some of these pioneering projects. Besides strong financial returns targeted by the [second] fund, this dual activity of being involved strategically and in implementations has delivered concrete orders and strategic insight on breakthrough new cleantech innovations."
Nico de Vries, chairman of the executive board at BAM, added: "Sustainability and the development of innovative sustainable solutions are a major priority for our business. We expect our involvement in ICF II to broaden our understanding of clean technologies and intensify our activities in this direction."
Gerard Hoetmer, chief executive of CSM, which invested €2m in the first fund with a target 40% annual rate of return, said: "CSM is committed to consistently seek technologies to enhance the nutritional value of our products while addressing objectives of people, planet, profit. With our involvement in ICF II, we will [tap] into breakthrough technological innovations."
Nityen Lal, managing director of Icos, said: "The partnership with BAM, CSM, Imtech and DUT delivers unparalleled support in sourcing, screening and growing innovative start-ups into internationally successful cleantech companies. "
In August last year, Icos agreed to back its second deal from DUT, the spin-off of BiAqua, an anti-water contamination company, having invested in ReSteel, a steel recycling technology provider the year before.