Fortera eyeing 7 green cement plants, $1B in financing

Low-carbon cement producer Fortera aims to fire up as many as seven commercial plants in the next five years, the company tells Axios exclusively.

Why it matters: The startup is pursuing $1 billion in financing to fund its aggressive expansion — a significant step up from the $30 million the company raised just two years ago.

Catch up fast: Fortera captures the carbon dioxide emitted by conventional cement factories, converts it into a powdery mineral, and mixes it into new cement.

• The result is 60% fewer emissions from cement production, Fortera says.
• The San Jose, Calif.-based company is building its first facility on a one-acre site alongside an existing cement plant in Redding, Calif.

The latest: Fortera is planning another five to six such plants. Most would be in the U.S. due to incentives in the Inflation Reduction Act.

Zoom in: The company is pursuing about $1 billion in "project financing from multiple sources for multiple projects," Fortera said in a statement.

• Each production plant would cost about $150 million and take about three years to build.
• "Banks, growth funds, infrastructure funds, and traditional VC investors — there's nobody we aren't talking to," CEO Ryan Gilliam tells Axios.

Of note: Fortera's investors include Temasek and Khosla Ventures. Both led the company's $30 million Series B in 2021.