Swedish greentech Ecohelix raises 20 mln crowns

Ecohelix, which has developed a method for producing environmentally friendly bio-polymers from residual products in pulp production from Almi, Molindo Energy and a small group of private cleantech investors.

“The money will be used for product development, recruitment and to prepare the technology and the company for large-scale commercialization,” the company said.

Ecohelix has developed and patented a method, which uses nature’s own enzymatic process, to convert the residual products lignin and hemicellulose from pulp mills to high-performance and biodegradable polymers.

The benefits of replacing these products with Ecohelix materials are better product and environmental performance. Ecohelix bio-polymer is renewable, biodegradable, has a low carbon footprint and is not based on crops that could otherwise be used for food. They also offer an alternative to today’s plastics that are usually oil-based.

“All these areas of use have significant market potential because the demand for bio-based and sustainable products is only increasing,” said Boris Gyllhamn, Investment Manager at Almi Invest Greentech.

“Thanks to this investment, we can now take important steps towards commercial establishment on a large scale.”

Petri Oinonen, CEO, founder and inventor of Ecohelix technology

“Our product replaces crude oil-based raw materials and helps solve the global challenge of reducing fossil carbon dioxide emissions. Our goal is high — in three years, we aim to be a world leader in the development and production of biopolymers thanks to our patented technology, our active partner network and our knowledgeable investors,” Oinonen said.