Summit Nanotech Corporation recently announced a $17.8 million CAD ($14 million USD) all-equity Series A round it closed in December. The investment was co-led by Xora Innovation and Capricorn’s Technology Impact Fund with participation from BHP Ventures.
The investment brings Summit Nanotech’s total funding to $23.5 million CAD.
Founded in 2018 by geophysicist Amanda Hall, Calgary-based Summit Nanotech develops processes designed to sustainably extract lithium resources.
The company’s denaLi platform uses advanced nanomaterials and employs processes to make lithium extraction cleaner and more efficient. It is designed to double yield, reduce climate pollution, minimize the use of chemicals and fresh water, and cut waste by 90 percent compared to traditional lithium extraction methods. Summit Nanotech’s technology is also being developed to recover lithium from battery recycling streams “to support the circular economy.”
Summit Nanotech’s mission is to enable its users to gain more control of their lithium production, enabling industries to use a cost-effective and sustainable source of lithium for batteries that can be used in portable devices, mobile gadgets, and electric vehicles.
“It’s not an overstatement to say that we are on the doorstep of a massive problem with lithium demand,” said Hall. “This financing will enable us to scale our denaLi technologies to make lithium mining more efficient and sustainable.”
RELATED: Summit Nanotech wins $1 million Women in Cleantech challenge
Summit Nanotech’s Series A follows the company winning MaRS Discovery District and Natural Resources Canada’s Women in Cleantech $1 million grand prize last year. The three-year challenge was dedicated to identifying top female innovators across the country who were developing technologies to tackle global environmental challenges.
In December, the cleantech firm was also awarded the Solar Impulse Foundation’s Efficient Solutions Label. This is awarded to one thousand companies which met the assessment criteria for environmental and economic sustainability. Live Wire Calgary reported that only 77 companies in Canada have been given the label.
Injected with new capital, Summit Nanotech plans to continue to commercialize its offerings.
Feature image from Summit Nanotech’s Facebook page