Israeli engineering startup ECOncrete has raised a $5 million Series A to continue developing its environmentally-friendly concrete, designed for marine construction and artificial structures that promote the growth of sea life. The round was led by Bridges Israel, with participation from Goldacre. Through ‘bio-enhancing concrete compositions’, surface textures, and science-based designs, the company has a way to reduce the ecological footprint of concrete infrastructure while enhancing its strength and durability. The technology has been used in the construction of breakwaters, seawalls and piers. “Ocean health and human health are entwined, especially today. We need strong coastlines and diverse marine ecosystems to protect and sustain coastal communities across the globe,” says Ido Sella, co-founder and CTO of ECOncrete. Highlighting the need for more impact investments in cleantech, co-founder and CEO Shimrit Perkol-Finkel added: “It's time to make a change and set new environmental standards for coastal and marine construction. We don’t want to stop the progress, but we want to progress in a way that allows marine life to thrive, using nature-based solutions and ecological engineering. To achieve this, we must deploy innovation from the emerging blue tech and climate tech arena. This calls for intensive capital investment.” Finkel is a Marie Curie fellow and winner of last year's EU Women Innovators Award.
Founded in Tel Aviv in 2012, the startup is currently in the proptech cohort of Goldacre’s accelerator programme, RElab 2020. With the new funding, the startup will scale operations as well as enter new regions and sectors, such as offshore energy, the sustainable construction of urban waterways and green construction.
Photo: Co-founders Shimrit Perkol-Finkel (CEO) and Ido Sella (CTO), from the company's Facebook page
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