In a recent episode of the Angel Insights podcast, we had the privilege of speaking with Louise Parlons Bentata, the CEO and co-founder of Bluemethane. The conversation revealed the surprising scale of the methane problem and how Bluemethane is pioneering innovative solutions to tackle it, turning it from a warming agent into a clean energy.
Listen to the podcast episode here:
Understanding the methane problem
"Methane is a bit like the ugly duckling compared to CO2," Louise explained. "It's between 28 and 84 times more potent, which means when it's in the atmosphere, it absorbs much more heat."
While carbon dioxide (CO2) often dominates climate discussions, methane plays a disproportionately large role in global warming. Louise explained that methane is between 28 and 84 times more potent than CO2 at trapping heat in the atmosphere.
Despite accounting for 25 to 30% of global warming to date, methane receives less than 1% of climate-related investment. This discrepancy highlights the urgent need to address methane emissions now, as the gas remains in the atmosphere for only 9 to 12 years. Cutting methane emissions today could have a significant, near-term impact on global warming.
The rapid birth of Bluemethane
The two co-founders met online during the COVID-19 pandemic through a climate tech fellowship. They took a leap of faith, quitting their jobs and founding Bluemethane without ever meeting in person. Their first in-person meeting was on a train platform en route to a Carbon13 – the climatetech focused venture builder – session in London.
The spark for Bluemethane came from a surprising source: a Guardian article about the greenhouse gas emissions from hydropower reservoirs. Louise's co-founder, Nesta, was shocked to learn about the scale of these emissions, despite his experience in the hydropower industry. Together, they explored methane emissions from water sources like reservoirs, rice fields, and lagoons. Their goal became clear: to capture methane at its source, rather than trying to remove it once it has dispersed into the atmosphere.
Louise credits Carbon13 with playing a pivotal role in Bluemethane's journey, providing essential support through its venture-building program in particular with preparing for fundraising.
"Neither Nesta or I had ever fundraised before. So the whole fundraising market was foreign as anything"
Shaken, not stirred, the technology behind Bluemethane
"Imagine you're holding a bottle of sparkling water," Louise said. "When you open it and shake it, the bubbles rush out. That's essentially how our system works – using pressure changes and agitation to release dissolved methane from water."
Bluemethane's technology draws inspiration from a familiar household experience: opening a bottle of sparkling water. Louise likened their process to the sudden release of bubbles when you open and shake a carbonated drink. Their system uses pressure changes and agitation to release dissolved methane from water. This methane is then captured and repurposed as biogas, which can be used to generate electricity or injected into the natural gas grid. Early success and future plans
Bluemethane's first major project is with Anglian Water in Cambridge, where they will install a unit to reduce methane emissions from wastewater. The company has also run successful pilot tests, such as with "Harvey the Methane Harvester" on the Isle of Wight, which demonstrated the technology's effectiveness of the technology.
"Harvey, the methane harvester, captured 20 times as much carbon in methane as the energy it consumed," Louise proudly shared. "That means the operating energy is effectively zero." Bluemethane's early success provides a strong validation of their business model, demonstrating significant potential for further growth. Looking ahead, Bluemethane aims to expand across the UK, Europe, and the US, targeting wastewater treatment plants, rice cultivation, and landfill leachate sites. Their ultimate goal is to prevent methane emissions from melting permafrost—a looming, catastrophic threat to our climate.
A call to action
The climate crisis is accelerating, and methane emissions are a critical part of the problem. Fortunately, Bluemethane proves that we have the capability to rapidly develop a technology to make an impact right now. As Louise said, "We have a solution that's ready today. Methane is our chance to make a real, measurable difference in global warming within a decade." With success in pilot projects and a clear path to commercial scale, Bluemethane are on the right track, though the problem we face is massive. Fortunately then, so is the opportunity.
Bluemethane is just one of many companies aiming to protect Earth's vital systems by reducing carbon or a carbon equivalent. Each year 10-20 companies focused on similar climate problems complete the Carbon13 venture builder programme and receive funding from the Carbon13 SEIS fund to grow.
If you want to make a meaningful and be part of the climate solution you may wish to consider investing in the Carbon13 SEIS fund. Beyond backing innovative climate tech companies in a a rapidly growing sector you may also benefit from significant tax relief.
Visit our Carbon13 SEIS Fund page www.syndicateroom.com/carbon13-seis to find out more and be part of the solution.
Learn more about Bluemethane on its website
Listen to our conversation on the Angel Insights podcast
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