16. Jul 2026
Avantium spins out Volta Technology into new company Carbeau
Avantium, a pioneer in renewable and circular polymer materials, recently announced the spin out of its electrochemical platform, previously known as Volta Technology, into a new, independent company named Carbeau, with retrospective effect from 1 April 2026.
Carbeau is backed by a strong investor consortium comprising GKT, Invest NL, Al Baleed Petrochemical and NOM, alongside Avantium. Volta Technology is an electrochemical platform that converts CO₂ into high-performing chemicals using electricity, enabling the use of CO₂ as a raw material rather than a waste stream. Carbeau has secured a total of EUR 35.2 million in funding. This includes EUR 23.7 million in cash contributions from external investors and an 11.5 million in-kind contribution (non-cash) from Avantium. Following the transaction, Avantium retains a 32.7% shareholding in Carbeau.
The external investor group brings together complementary industrial, financial and regional expertise. Strategic partners comprise GKT GmbH, based in Austria, contributing extensive experience in industrial process technology, and Al Baleed Petrochemical (SFZ), based in Oman, adding petrochemical and international market expertise. Financial partners are Invest NL, the National Promotional Institution of the Netherlands, supporting the acceleration of innovative and sustainable technologies, and Investment and Development Agency for the Northern Netherlands (NOM) strengthening Carbeau’s connection to the Northern Netherlands’ industrial ecosystem. Together with Avantium, the consortium is well positioned to support Carbeau’s next phase of growth and scale up ambitions.
The name Carbeau unites "Carbon" and "Beau" (beautiful), perfectly capturing the company's mission: Making Carbon Work Beautifully. Carbeau shifts the global narrative around CO₂ by transforming it from a critical emission challenge into valuable and sustainable materials. Carbeau’s technology platform focuses on the electrochemical conversion of CO₂, using electrons, preferably generated from renewable electricity, into valuable chemical building blocks. This approach enables the transformation of CO₂ from a waste emission into a valuable feedstock, supporting the production of high value, renewable products with limited to negative carbon emissions. The company’s initial product focus includes glycolic acid for the personal care market and PLGA (polylactic co glycolic acid), a compostable plastic offering strong technical performance in terms of barrier properties and marine degradability. These CO₂ based products are designed to be cost competitive with incumbent fossil based materials, supporting both climate objectives and broad market adoption.
Carbeau will be headquartered at the Amsterdam Science Park, maintaining close ties with Avantium’s broader innovation ecosystem, and is planning the development of a pilot plant in Delfzijl in the north of the Netherlands. The Delfzijl region offers a strong industrial and Carbon Capture & Utilization (CCU) base and aligns well with Carbeau’s ambitions to leverage sustainable energy and infrastructure for scaling its electrochemical CO₂ conversion technology.
The company will be led by an experienced management team with expertise across technology development, scale up and commercialization. By spinning out Volta Technology into Carbeau, Avantium enables a sharper strategic focus for both companies. Avantium continues to advance its core activities in renewable polymer materials, while Carbeau accelerates the development and industrial deployment of electrochemical CO₂ utilization technologies. AT
avantium.com