Diversified India-headquartered conglomerate Reliance Industries has agreed to provide $50m in capital for US-based, cleantech-focused venture capital fund Breakthrough Energy Ventures II.
The vehicle is the second to be launched by Breakthrough Energy, a coalition of high net-worth investors aiming to help promote the use of renewable energy. It invests in areas such as renewables technology, energy efficiency and storage, and technologies that can help increase sustainability in other areas.
Breakthrough Energy Ventures II has an $870m target for its close, and Reliance is committing the capital over several tranches across an eight-to-10 year period. It is the successor vehicle to a first fund that closed at $1bn in 2016.
Companies that have received funding from Breakthrough Energy Ventures include fusion energy system developer Commonwealth Fusion Systems, crop nutrition technology developer Pivot Bio and edible protein developer Nature’s Fynd.
The latest fund is the third to be launched by Breakthrough Energy Ventures, which announced a €100m ($113m) European fund called Breakthrough Energy Ventures Europe in May 2019, with half the capital coming from European Investment Bank.
