UK technology innovator Imperial Innovations invests in green building materials company Novacem

10th August 2009

UK technology commercialisation and investment company Imperial Innovations Group, has invested £500,000 in green building materials company Novacem, as part of a £1m venture investment round.

Other investors included seed investor London Technology Fund and early stage science investor Royal Society Enterprise Fund.

Novacem is developing what it descirbes as ‘green cement’ that locks atmospheric CO2 into construction materials. The recyclable cement system is based on magnesium oxide and special mineral additives and hardens by absorbing atmospheric CO2.

Novacem is developing novel cement that reduces the amount of carbon dioxide produced in its creation; and absorbs and locks away atmospheric CO2 on hardening. Because the production of conventional Portland cement is thought to be responsible for five per cent of global CO2 emissions, this ‘carbon negative’ cement could have significant benefits in the fight against global warming.

Imperial Innovations owns 39.5 per cent of Novacem, which has appointed Jon Page, Imperial Innovations’ director of new ventures to its board.

Imperial Innovations was founded in 1986 and admitted to the AIM Market of the London Stock Exchange in 2006. Based at Imperial College London, Imperial Innovations’ portfolio of equity holdings in spans the three core areas of healthcare, engineering & IT, and energy & environment.

Companies in the portfolio of Imperial Innovations include electric motor and generator solutions company Evo Electric, lithium ion battery technology business Nexeo and solar concentrator developer Quantasol.

Copyright © 2009 NewNet