Spain’s AlgaEnergy Takes on Two New Partners

AlgaEnergy, a leading international microalgae biotechnology company, has signed an investment agreement with two new partners: Caixa Capital Risc and CDTI. Caixa Capital Risc is CriteriaCaixa’s venture capital management company (CaixaBank), and the CDTI is a public entity promoting innovation and technological development among Spanish companies.

The agreement signals the entry of both companies into the shareholding structure of AlgaEnergy, as minor shareholders. This represents a significant capital increase that AlgaEnergy and its management team will leverage to strengthen its international footprint, expand its production facilities in Spain, launch new business units such as food and cosmetics, and accelerate its product development pipeline of microalgae-based solutions.

Boosting the microalgae biotechnology sector

AlgaEnergy, which was established in 2007, has been a pioneer in the field of microalgae biotechnology research, production, and commercialization, being the first company to use industrial CO₂ from other sources to grow microalgae. The company accumulates over five decades of microalgae-specific knowledge.

Led by Chief Scientific Officer Professor Miguel García Guerrero, an internationally recognized microalgae authority, the company operates among the most advanced industrial production plants for microalgae in the world. Their technology is being developed together with the Japanese tech-multinational Yokogawa, a specialist in industrial automation and a shareholder of AlgaEnergy since 2018.

AlgaEnergy’s main production facility is annexed to Spain’s largest combined-cycle power plant, owned by Iberdrola, a world leader in renewable energy and a technological partner of AlgaEnergy since 2009. AlgaEnergy’s microalgae-based products are used by over two million farmers worldwide who are implementing more sustainable farming practices.

Generating a positive impact on society

The union of AlgaEnergy, Caixa Capital Risc and INNVIERTE signifies a shared objective to make a positive impact on the society through business practices that are sustainable, innovative and generate added value.

Augusto Rodríguez-Villa, President of AlgaEnergy said, “This agreement is the best possible partnership in the journey to achieve our mission to leverage the potential of microalgae worldwide. We share with our new shareholders the same vision for the future, the belief that a more sustainable development is possible and that microalgae can be a key contributor towards that objective.”