GPS Renewables Raises Series B Funding From SBICap Ventures

Bioenergy technology firm GPS Renewables raises Series B funding from Neev Fund II managed by SBICap Ventures. The latest round of funding will be used towards R&D and to support GPS Renewables’ next phase of growth and expansion. With the current round, GPS has cumulatively raised close to $20 Million in the form of equity. The earlier round was led by Netherlands based Hivos-Triodos Fund and Hyderabad-based Caspian Impact Investments in September 2020.

GPS Renewables started off with a captive biogas product called the ‘BioUrja’. Today, the company has 100+ BioUrja installations across South Asia, with Fortune 500 companies such as Microsoft, Intel, Bosch, Cummins, Saint Gobain, Reliance, and several other leading hospitality chains such as Oberoi, Taj, ITC, Marriott, Hyatt and Accor Groups as clients. The Company has successfully expanded its capacity by over 5000x over the last couple of years, thereby positioning itself as the go-to project integrator in the bioenergy space, covering BioCNG, Bioethanol and Green Hydrogen.

Very recently, GPS Renewables commissioned Asia’s largest BioCNG plant based on SSO (Source Separated Organics) in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, which was inaugurated by Honourable Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Setup over 15 acres of land, this biogas plant is expected to produce 17 tonnes of BioCNG every day from 550 tonnes of organic household waste. Nearly 400 city buses in Indore will soon run on the BioCNG generated from this biogas plant. The company is in the process of setting up the world's largest BioCNG plant in Hyderabad in association with project development partners from Japan.

Commenting on the investment, Mainak Chakraborty, Co-founder and CEO of GPS Renewables, said, “Untreated organic waste streams, ranging from urban waste to paddy straw, are one of the biggest contributors to global warming and it poses serious health concerns for the current and future generations alike. Climate positive solutions to these problems are the need of the hour, and that’s where GPS’ bioenergy solutions suite comes in. We are excited to partner with Neev II as we further strengthen our mission towards making the world cleaner and more sustainable. This partnership will help accelerate our growth while capitalising on the organic feedstock to bioenergy market.”

Manav Bansal, CIO, Neev Funds, said, “This investment into GPS resonates with our mission to decarbonise and to support the next generation of climate entrepreneurs. We will continue to open the gates of capital to climate-focused purpose driven businesses” 

Akshay Panth, Principal, Neev Funds, said, “We look forward to our partnership with GPS.  It has been a great story of entrepreneurship, and we are impressed with the strong product the team has built from scratch. Neev is proud to partner with GPS in their journey to help the world transition to a more sustainable way of living.”

GPS Renewables is a Bangalore based cleantech firm founded in 2012 by IIM-B graduates Mainak Chakraborty and Sreekrishna Sankar. The company currently focuses on biomethanation technologies to solve the organic waste management challenge, accelerate substitution of fossil fuel with bioenergy and play a key role in mitigating climate change.

SVL-SME Fund (Neev II Fund), the successor fund of Neev I, was launched in May 2021 and seeks to provide growth and capital expansion to SMEs offering solutions for clean energy, electric vehicles, efficient use of raw materials, and water and circular economy projects in the country. Neev Fund II aims to provide growth capital to emerging and innovative SMEs that focus on mitigating climate risks, promoting social development, job creation, and gender equality.