Climate Catalyst

With A Dedicated Second Fund, Avaana Capital Sharpens Its Focus On Fostering An Early-stage Start-up Ecosystem That Champions Sustainability And Climate Action

- BINU PAUL

IN THE MIDST of a precarious global investment scene, climate-tech venture capital (VC) managed to beat the odds and delivered a whopping $70.1 billion in investments in 2022, marking an impressive 89 per cent surge from the previous year, according to a report by HolonIQ, a global impact intelligence platform. Such investments are becoming popular in India, too. The country received as much as $6.2 billion in investments in 2022—$3.7 billion more than the $2.5 billion in the previous year, according to the report. Well, it’s no secret that most of these funds are directed towards big renewable energy infrastructure and storage projects, and mobility. But VC investment in pure-play early-stage climate-tech start-ups are still elusive—a mere whisper in the wind.

However, Mumbai-based VC Avaana Capital is a trailblazer in India’s fledgeling climate-tech start-up scene, with its focus on climate action and sustainability. Since its inception in 2018, Avaana Capital has backed more than 20 early-stage start-ups working in fields related to climate and sustainability. For instance, it has invested $3.5 million in FarMart, a software-as-a-service (SaaS)-led business-to-business (B2B) food supply platform; $1.5 million in Kota-based eekifoods that has developed a proprietary vegetable-growing technology to produce pesticide-free vegetables at mandi (wholesale) rates; led a $5-million round in Terra.do, a global platform for climate skilling and careers; and participated in multiple rounds of funding in Turno that enables commercial electric vehicle (EV) distribution and financing.