Carbonyx, a Vancouver-based cleantech firm, has raised $1.2M CAD in pre-seed funding led by WUTIF Capital. The company uses proprietary electrochemical technology with water and electricity to turn industrial waste rock and CO2 into carbon-negative carbonates, high-performance silica, and critical minerals. The capital will fund team expansion and construction of a shipping container-sized demonstration unit.
Cleantech Backs Waste Mineralization
This raise arrives as investors pour into technologies valorizing mining waste. Exterra Carbon Solutions secured $20M CAD Series A in 2025 for similar critical minerals extraction from tailings. Arca Climate Technologies raised $8M USD that year to accelerate natural carbon mineralization with alkaline waste. Carbonyx's multi-output platform—producing materials for construction and manufacturing—addresses economic viability beyond carbon credits alone.
Mining Waste Burdens Industry
Billions of tonnes of mining and construction waste accumulate globally, pressuring operators under ESG mandates. Traditional processing emits CO2 and requires high heat, exacerbating emissions. Carbonyx targets this by accelerating natural mineralization processes in waste rock, integrating permanent CO2 storage into material production. The approach uses low-energy, modular systems deployable near waste sites, reducing logistics costs.
Electrochemical Shift Disrupts Manufacturing
Carbonyx's proprietary reactor breaks down mineral-rich waste without heat, emissions, or byproducts, unlike conventional methods. It yields carbon-negative carbonates for infrastructure, silica for stronger coatings and plastics, and recovered critical minerals for batteries and devices. This dual revenue from materials sales and verifiable carbon removal differentiates it from credit-dependent peers.
As CEO Doug Pimlott noted:
“We’re basically a carbon removal company disguised as a materials company.”
Travisertine Technologies uses electrochemical precipitation for carbonates but focuses less on silica and minerals co-production.
Local Investors Signal Validation
WUTIF Capital, with exits like Carbon Engineering acquired by Occidental Petroleum, leads alongside Spring Impact Capital, focused on circular economy plays, and UBC Venture Funds, backing research spin-offs. WUTIF's track record in BC cleantech, including waste transformation like CarboNet, underscores conviction in Carbonyx's scalability. Spring adds impact thesis alignment for planetary health innovations.
Investor Aaron Stuart highlighted the appeal:
“It’s not every day that you come across a team that has developed a technology to capture CO2 that produces such a profitable byproduct.”
Mineralization Market Accelerates Growth
The CO2 mineralization market stands at $1.27B in 2024, projected to reach $3.21B by 2032 at 12.6% CAGR per Metastat Insight. Drivers include net-zero pledges and mining ESG pressures, with abundant waste rock as feedstock. Canada’s critical minerals strategy and $28.9M federal cleantech funding bolster the space.
UBC Pedigree Drives Expertise
Carbonyx spun out from UBC's Curtis P. Berlinguette Research Group, known for CO2 capture expertise. CEO Doug Pimlott, a former post-doc, leads alongside electrochemistry PhD Mia Stankovic and Adrien Noble. This academic foundation equips the team to commercialize low-energy electrochemical processes.
Pilots Target Commercial Scale
Funds enable hiring three staff and building a multi-tonne demo in a shipping container. The company eyes pilot partnerships with materials firms and carbon removal buyers, aiming for commercial plants in 2-3 years and megatonne-scale CO2 removal in a decade.