Spain’s climate change challenges help Madrid-based VC Seaya secure €300M for climate tech fund

According to a recent Dealroom report on the Spanish tech ecosystem, the total enterprise value of Spanish startups exceeded €100 billion in 2023. Reflecting this positive trend, Madrid-based venture capital firm Seaya has launched Seaya Andromeda, a €300 million climate tech fund classified as “Article 9” under the EU’s Sustainable Finance Disclosures Regulation Act, which mandates that investments must positively impact society or the environment.

Seaya, established 12 years ago, primarily targets mission-driven startups in Europe and Latin America. The Andromeda fund will support growth companies focused on energy transition, decarbonization, sustainable food chains, and the circular economy. The fund plans to invest between €7 million and €40 million initially, retain capital for follow-up investments, and aims to make 25 investments by 2027, with five investments already made.

Founded in 2013 by former private equity investor Beatriz González, Seaya shifted towards climate and sustainable investing after supporting a recycled clothing line. González, who previously worked for Morgan Stanley, Excel Partners, and Darby Overseas Investments in the U.S., later became a director of Telefónica’s pension fund, managing its alternative assets program.

Under González’s leadership, Seaya has invested in climate tech firms such as Biome Makers, Clarity.ai, Crowdfarming, Descartes, RatedPower, Samara, and Wallbox, which went public on the New York Stock Exchange in 2021.

Seaya’s investments include Spain-based Seabery, which developed AR software and hardware for training welders, reducing carbon emissions by 95% per session, and UK-based Recycleye, an AI-powered waste management startup that builds robots for sorting recyclables. In San Francisco, they invested in Pachama, a company that uses data to verify carbon credit quality and support new carbon credit projects.

The launch of Seaya Andromeda is part of a broader Southern European funding resurgence. Recently, Plus Partners launched in Barcelona with plans for a $30 million to $50 million fund. The 2023 “State of European Tech” report also ranked Spain’s tech ecosystem fourth overall in Europe, noting it had the highest number of startup fundings last year.