LONDON, UK: i(x) Net Zero PLC (AIM: IX.), the investing company which focuses on the Energy Transition, has announced that its portfolio company, WasteFuel Global, LLC, has secured a $10m investment from bp, the multi-national energy company.

The investment will support WasteFuel’s plans to develop a global network of plants to convert municipal and agricultural waste into bio-methanol, a biofuel which could play a significant role in decarbonising hard-to-abate sectors like shipping.

The deal, which leads the Series B investment round, results in a material uplift in the NAV attributable to i(x) Net Zero’s holding in WasteFuel. Following bp’s investment, the unaudited NAV of i(x) Net Zero’s equity interest in WasteFuel is $131.69m, a 181% increase from the last reported audited NAV ($46.91m as at 31 December 2022). Furthermore, i(x) Net Zero’s Portfolio NAV has increased from $63.84m as at 31 December 2022 to $148.62m*.

WasteFuel intends to develop multiple bio-methanol plants around the world in collaboration with local strategic partners including waste companies, with the first project expected to be in Dubai. bp and WasteFuel have entered a memorandum of understanding to offtake the produced bio-methanol and, working together, to help optimize and improve bio-methanol yields and economics.

WasteFuel has a proven track record of working with global partners as it pursues its plans for a global network of bio-methanol plants converted from waste. In 2022 WasteFuel entered a commercial-scale bio-methanol partnership with A.P. Moller – Maersk, the global container logistics company. WasteFuel also has a partnership with a leading end-to-end waste management company, to develop the first commercial scale municipal waste-to-renewable methanol plant in the Middle East.

Pär Lindström, Chief Executive Officer of i(x) Net Zero, said: “This is a highly significant milestone for our portfolio company, WasteFuel, which is seeking to make a tangible impact on climate change through the production of sustainable fuels from municipal and agricultural waste. This partnership with bp validates WasteFuel’s leading-edge technology and its potential to efficiently produce fuel from waste sources. The investment will accelerate the development of WasteFuel’s first waste-to-bio-methanol plant, as part of its plans to develop a global network of bio-methanol plants.”

Philipp Schoelzel, vice president of Next Generation biofuels in bp, said: “Working with WasteFuel allows bp to offtake bio-methanol and help optimize production which could support decarbonizing shipping. bp is in action to produce more biofuels, aiming to deliver around 100,000 barrels per day by 2030, to help decarbonize transport. Investments like this can contribute to achieving our net zero targets and goals and help our customers to decarbonize too.”

Trevor Neilson, Co-founder, Chairman and CEO of WasteFuel added: “This investment from bp ventures is a significant milestone for WasteFuel as it will help scale the production of bio-methanol to decarbonize the shipping sector. As companies who are reliant on shipping work to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, it is essential that we dramatically expand the availability of these fuels.”