34 climate tech companies from across the UK have been accepted into the third iteration of Tech Nation’s Net Zero programme – Europe’s first programme dedicated to supporting the UK’s most promising climate tech companies. The UK is leading the way for climate tech investment in Europe, with 249 climate tech rounds raising $2.6bn in total in 2021 – a 63% increase on the $1.6bn raised in 2020. Climate tech companies join Net Zero programme 2022 looks set to be a record year for climate tech investment. With $2.1bn raised so far, compared to $2.6bn for the whole of 2021, the UK climate tech sector’s growth is showing no signs of being affected by the economic downturn. The companies joining Net Zero 3.0 are revolutionising the UK’s approach to combating climate change across industries – including agriculture, transport, energy and construction. Algae engineering is an emerging theme this year, with 3 of this year’s companies utilising the plant to create biofuel, bioplastics and carbon sequestration. Exactly half (17) of the Net Zero 3.0 companies are working in the energy sector, helping to tackle the UK’s current energy and cost of living crisis. Half (17) of the Net Zero 3.0 cohort are headquartered outside of London, with companies innovating across regions and countries, including Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland. Tech Nation, the UK’s leading growth platform for tech scaleups, today announces the 34 climate tech companies who have been accepted into Net Zero 3.0 – the third iteration of the Net Zero growth programme. See more breaking stories here. Net Zero 3.0 is the first government-backed programme designed to support the most promising climate tech companies to accelerate the UK’s path to net zero. This year’s successful companies were assessed by over 50 judges across key industries, including climate specialists, investors and senior representatives from companies such as Google for Startups, Sage and BNP Paribas. Companies were judged based on their scalability and potential to help the UK reach its high-priority net zero goal. The chosen companies are actively decarbonising key sectors, from energy and transport to construction and agriculture. This year’s Net Zero cohort demonstrates that tackling climate change is a priority across all parts of the UK, as 51% of the cohort are headquartered outside of London, with companies based in Wales, Northern Ireland, Scotland, the North and the East of England. The UK leads the way in Europe for its number of climate tech companies and investment New data from Tech Nation and Net Zero Insights has revealed there are over 4,400 climate tech startups and scaleups in the UK; 60% more than the number in France (2,793) and 43% more than in Germany (3,100). The UK is also leading the way for climate tech investment in Europe, with 249 climate tech rounds raising $2.6bn in total in 2021 – a 63% increase on the $1.6bn raised in 2020. This year looks set to be a record year for climate tech investment, with $2.1bn raised in 2022 so far, compared to $2.6bn for the whole of 2021. The UK climate tech sector’s growth is showing no signs of being affected by the economic downturn. With its first two iterations of the Net Zero programme, Tech Nation has previously supported the growth of 62 of the UK’s leading climate tech companies. Together with the Net Zero 3.0 cohort, these companies have collectively raised over £500mn in VC investment. The majority of Net Zero 3.0 companies are working in the energy sector As the UK finds itself in the midst of an energy crisis, exactly half (17) of the companies joining Net Zero 3.0 are working to make UK energy consumption both cleaner and more affordable for customers. Joining this year’s Net Zero 3.0 cohort, Filia brings solar power to urban homes by integrating solar technology into the fabric of blackout/security blinds and garage doors, while Electric Miles has developed algorithms that profile, aggregate and shift energy demand fro...