Stamford, Connecticut, U.S.A.-based private equity firm Pegasus Capital Advisors has announced a collaboration with Delaware, U.S.A.-based carbon neutral materials company Partanna to develop strategic investments in carbon-negative materials for marine restoration and resilient coastal infrastructure.
If they go ahead, the investments, which could be worth up to USD 20 million (EUR 17.3 million), would be made through Global Fund for Coral Reefs (GFCR), a Pegasus-managed platform, and be operated by Partanna Ocean, a Partanna subsidiary.
"Coral reefs and coastal ecosystems are disappearing at an alarming rate – threatening marine life, livelihoods, and entire communities," Pegasus Co-Managing Partner David Cogut said. “At Pegasus Capital, we believe the best investments deliver strong returns for investors and improve people's lives. Partanna Ocean is a true innovator at the intersection of climate, technology, and the marine environment – restoring ecosystems, creating local jobs, and helping coastal communities withstand rising seas and climate-driven disasters."
Though the investment plan has not been completed and is subject to further diligence and final agreements, it reflects, the companies said in a joint release, “a shared ambition to deliver nature-positive infrastructure at scale and to unlock blended finance solutions, including catalytic grants and climate-aligned capital, to accelerate deployment in emerging markets.”
The companies noted in the release that coral reefs generate USD 9 billion (EUR 7.8 billion) worth of coastal protection, as well as USD 6.8 billion (EUR 5.9 billion) for fisheries and USD 35.8 billion (EUR 30.9 billion) in tourism globally a year.
Partanna has developed an innovative cement product that, unlike traditional concrete which emits carbon dioxide, actually captures and stores carbon and is strengthened by seawater.
"Partanna's innovation offers a rare mix of climate impact and infrastructure scale," Pegasus Capital Operating Advisor Mahamadou Coulibaly.
"This significant partnership enables us to create a world where infrastructure on land and sea can work for us, not against us,” Partanna Co-Founder and CEO Rick Fox said.
Carlos Duarte, the coral research and development accelerator platform executive director at intergovernmental forum G20, said that the collaboration had the potential to produce hybrid reefs that could capture CO2, “leading to a triple win: an ocean, climate, and biodiversity positive approach to restoring coral reefs."
GFCR is a multi-partner initiative to support the resilience and restoration of coral reefs; its investment arm is managed by Pegasus. It provides both funding to coastal reef restoration projects and a coalition of public and private partners – including member countries Jamaica, The Dominican Republic, Indonesia, Ecuador, Mozambique, The Maldives, The Bahamas –who work together toward reef protection.
