Graforce Secures Strategic Funding to Scale Plasma Pyrolysis Globally
The Paris-based Next Generation Fuels Industrial & Technological fund Calderion (Audacia), in partnership with infrastructure developer Terravent and the WenCo Family Office, has announced the successful closing of a strategic financing round for Berlin-based Graforce GmbH. The investment, totaling a double-digit million-euro amount, is aimed at advancing the industrial scale-up of Graforce’s proprietary plasma pyrolysis technology. This technology is designed to meet the growing global demand for cost-efficient, low-carbon hydrogen, syngas, and carbon removal solutions while remaining compatible with existing industrial infrastructures.
Innovative Technology for Industrial Decarbonization
Graforce’s plasma pyrolysis technology represents a disruptive alternative to traditional CO₂-intensive industrial processes such as steam reforming and classical gasification. By applying plasma to feedstocks including methane, biogas, flare gas, and landfill gas, the technology converts these streams into valuable molecular components rather than releasing them as emissions.
The process delivers high-efficiency production of clean hydrogen and syngas, while simultaneously producing carbon as a high-purity industrial raw material that can remain in material cycles. When biogenic feedstocks are used, the technology achieves a negative CO₂ footprint, effectively removing carbon from the atmosphere as it is permanently stored rather than released. This modular approach allows for decentralized production directly at the point of consumption, significantly reducing transport costs and energy losses.
Strategic Collaboration with RAG Austria AG
Alongside the financing round, Graforce is strengthening its strategic partnership with energy storage company RAG Austria AG. RAG Austria AG provides both financial and industrial support for the continued development of Graforce’s methane plasma pyrolysis plants. The collaboration focuses on optimizing the system, improving plant efficiency, and supporting industrial integration. This partnership positions Graforce to achieve continuous industrial operation and facilitates the deployment of modular plants in locations with varying availability of renewable energy sources.
Deployment of Funds: Expansion and Market Development
The newly secured funding will support technological advancement, the construction of additional industrial-scale plants, and international market expansion. Graforce aims to significantly increase its production capacity to address the rising demand for clean hydrogen and syngas across the steel, chemical, and transportation sectors. The investment is expected to accelerate the global rollout of the company’s plasma pyrolysis technology.
Statements from Strategic Partners
Vincent Brillault, Founding Partner of Calderion, emphasized the strategic importance of the investment: “With Graforce’s addition to our portfolio, Calderion strengthens its coverage of next-generation fuel value chains. The technology combines CO₂ capture, plasma-based methane conversion, and synthetic fuel production, enabling integrated pathways from methane and CO₂ to low-carbon hydrogen and syngas. This supports industrial decarbonization and sustainable fuel supply for maritime and aviation sectors. It also provides natural hydrogen explorers with a solution to valorize associated methane without CO₂ emissions.”
Jens Rötteken, CEO of Terravent, highlighted the flexibility and industrial impact of Graforce’s technology: “The ability to provide various product gases in a decentralized and emission-free manner addresses a critical gap in the industrial value chain. Our project planning expertise is contributing to bringing this technology to the global market.”
Dr. Jens Hanke, CEO of Graforce GmbH, expressed enthusiasm about the potential of the technology: “This investment underscores the enormous potential of our plasmalysis technology for a sustainable energy transition. We are excited to work together to make our plasma pyrolysis technology scalable and cost-effective.”
Driving a Sustainable Energy Transition
Graforce’s plasma pyrolysis approach is positioned to play a pivotal role in the energy transition by providing industrial solutions that minimize carbon emissions while generating valuable energy products. The technology addresses multiple challenges simultaneously: reducing reliance on fossil fuels, decreasing CO₂ emissions, and producing clean hydrogen and syngas efficiently. By converting methane and other carbon-rich feedstocks into usable molecules and solid carbon, Graforce provides industries with an opportunity to operate more sustainably without compromising production efficiency.
The modular nature of the plasma pyrolysis plants allows for deployment in diverse industrial settings, offering flexibility for industries with variable energy and feedstock availability. This approach also helps reduce logistical costs and energy losses typically associated with centralized production facilities, enabling decentralized production close to the point of consumption.
Market Implications and Future Outlook
The successful closing of this financing round is expected to accelerate Graforce’s international expansion and the industrial adoption of plasma pyrolysis. The company’s focus on steel, chemical, and transportation sectors highlights the versatility and applicability of the technology across industries that are under increasing pressure to reduce carbon emissions.
By producing hydrogen and syngas with a minimal carbon footprint, Graforce’s technology not only supports decarbonization efforts but also creates opportunities for the circular use of carbon in industrial applications. This positions Graforce as a critical player in both industrial decarbonization and the development of low-carbon synthetic fuels.
The collaboration with RAG Austria AG ensures that Graforce’s plants will benefit from ongoing system optimization and industrial integration, providing a path toward continuous operation and improved efficiency. This partnership further solidifies the company’s strategy to scale up modular plants and expand globally while supporting renewable energy integration.
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