Newheat, a supplier of renewable heat, has raised €30 million ($33 million) from SWEN Capital Partners, along with Newheat’s historic partners Noria, Bpifrance, the Etchart Group and the holding company Holdheat.
The vast majority of the funds raised will be used to invest directly in heat plant projects developed by the company, for which it plans to systematically have majority ownership.
Heat is the leading energy use in France, accounting for 45 percent of the country’s final energy needs. Currently, 60 percent of France’s heat production is based on fossil fuels and accounts for 80 percent of domestic gas imports. Newheat said decarbonizing heat is crucial to decarbonizing the country’s energy mix. However, until recently, this subject was a “blind spot” in the French and European energy policy.
The past two years have been marked by a growing awareness of the issue, due in part to extreme climatic events, tension over energy supply and explod