Sun Metalon secures $21 million to accelerate metal industry decarbonisation
November 27, 2024
Sun Metalon Inc, with locations in Wood Dale, Illinois, USA, and Kanagawa, Japan, has successfully closed a $21 million Series A funding round, bringing its total capital raised to $30.7 million. Key investors in this round include JIC Venture Growth Investments, Sumitomo Corporation Global Metals, and HITE Hedge Asset Management, along with existing backers UTEC and Globis Capital Partners, D4V, i-nest capital, Scrum Ventures, and Berkeley SkyDeck.
“The metal industry is at a critical juncture, facing dual challenges of decarbonisation and the need for a circular supply chain,” stated Sun Metalon CEO, Kazuhiko Nishioka. “Our proprietary heating technology addresses issues by significantly reducing CO2 emissions and enabling efficient metal recycling, all while keeping costs low. This funding will accelerate our efforts to implement our heating process with client firms and expand our metal manufacturing abilities using local metal resources. We’re committed to driving the transition to a low-carbon, circular economy in the metal industry.”
Since its founding in 2021, the company has been operating in Japan and the United States. In spring 2024, Sun Metalon expanded its US plant, which now serves as a hub for collaboration with American partners and as a centre for metal manufacturing and recycling operations. The company has also made significant progress in intellectual property protection, with core patents granted in both Japan and the United States.
With a space-efficient and cost-effective system, Sun Metalon’s technology can reduce energy consumption by 85% compared to existing methods for heating and purifying metal chips and scraps. The company has already established partnerships with leading automotive, construction machinery, heavy industry, and steel manufacturing companies, contributing to industrial decarbonisation efforts across multiple sectors.
“The future of mobility requires smart utilisation of our resources, and multiple companies in the automotive industry already appreciate Sun Metalon’s advanced solutions for making mobility and industrial manufacturing better and sustainable,” added David A Levine, Portfolio Manager of HITE Hedge. “Such aligned innovation fits well with our profiting strategies from the energy transition. We’re excited to see the future unfold for the company and its partners and customers.”
