Breakthrough Energy Catalyst Private Sector & Philanthropic Partners
Breakthrough Energy Catalyst is an initiative designed to deal with one of the biggest bottlenecks slowing down progress to net zero—the fact that it’s extremely hard to get funding to turn lab-proven clean technology concepts into cheap, reliable products.
Catalyst aims to help promising technologies in key sectors make this leap many times faster than they would ordinarily by putting together large-scale commercial demonstration projects.
Our partners include American Airlines, ArcelorMittal, Bank of America, BMO Financial Group, The BlackRock Foundation, Boston Consulting Group, Builders Vision, Citi, General Motors, HSBC, IKEA Foundation, Microsoft, Mitsubishi Corporation, and State Farm. All have invested in Catalyst to accelerate the development and adoption of critical climate technologies we need to meaningfully reduce emissions.
“We see immense promise in the mission of Breakthrough Energy Catalyst, and our investment is a vote of confidence in the difference-making potential of this unique and collaborative approach,” said Doug Parker, Chairman and CEO of American Airlines. “We have an ambitious vision of a low-carbon future for our airline and a plan to match, but we know our own efforts can only get us so far. By working in partnership with Catalyst, we’re helping accelerate and scale our industry’s nascent solutions, like sustainable aviation fuel, along with other technologies that will be necessary to reduce emissions from aviation and across the economy.”
“The Catalyst program is innovative and necessary. It brings together public and private finance with the objective of fast-tracking the deployment of projects which can deliver significant carbon reduction. For ArcelorMittal and the steel industry this kind of initiative is critically important. The steel industry knows how to decarbonise—essentially what is missing is the availability of clean energy at competitive prices that provides the foundation for us to really accelerate. That’s why, after discussing the purpose of Catalyst with Bill, we were very happy to join as an anchor partner,” said Aditya Mittal, CEO of ArcelorMittal. “Achieving net zero by 2050 needs a coordinated global drive the likes of which the world has never seen before. ArcelorMittal has its own comprehensive plan to decarbonise—with the first step being to achieve our group target of reducing emissions intensity by 25% by 2030—but partnerships to scale up and accelerate progress are vital. There are so many interesting new companies and technologies that will help the world decarbonise—through both our XCarb™ fund and now Breakthrough Energy Catalyst we look forward to helping these companies accelerate their contribution.”
“Private sector leaders are working across a broad range of capabilities to mobilize the capital needed to decarbonize critical sectors and reach our net-zero goals,” said Brian Moynihan, CEO of Bank of America. “Breakthrough Energy Catalyst can drive partnerships and innovation that help get us there.”
“The transition to a net-zero world and creating a more sustainable future is the shared responsibility of every citizen, corporation, and government. Mobilizing the $50 trillion in capital necessary to finance the global energy transition will require innovative new partnerships across the public, private, and nonprofit sectors,” said Larry Fink, Chairman and CEO of BlackRock. “Our partnership with the Catalyst program represents a five-year philanthropic commitment to invest in cutting-edge science that will help bring vital clean energy solutions forward—at scale—to achieve the world’s decarbonization goals and mitigate the uneven impact of climate change on communities.”
“We’re excited by the opportunity to be the first Canadian company to join Breakthrough Energy Catalyst, whose mandate strongly aligns with BMO’s Purpose to Boldly Grow the Good in business and life, and our commitment to mobilizing capital for a sustainable future,” said Darryl White, CEO, BMO Financial Group. “We look forward to applying our extensive project finance and energy transition expertise to the acceleration of climate innovation critical to helping the economy, and our clients, make progress in the transition to a net-zero world.”
“Boston Consulting Group (BCG) is delighted to partner with Catalyst to bring the power of BCG’s consulting, climate, and industry expertise to accelerate the green industrial revolution,” said Christoph Schweizer, CEO of BCG (as of October 1, 2021). “This new partnership with some of the world’s leading corporations will be critical to unlocking the potential to find, fund and scale the technology solutions which will close the gap to our vital climate targets.”
“We have one planet to live on and we must learn to live here responsibly with the finite resources that we have,” said Lukas Walton, Builders Vision Founder and CEO. “Builders Vision is proud to be a part of the Catalyst community with its mission to accelerate cutting-edge climate technologies toward full-scaled deployment. This challenge is going to take all of us working together if we are to reach net zero by 2050. We must collectively leverage the power of public, private, philanthropic and financial sectors, taking risks on new technology, scaling existing solutions faster, and involving the communities impacted most. There is simply no time to waste.”
“Getting to net zero by 2050 requires an all-hands effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and investing in innovative technologies at scale is a critical component of that,” said Jane Fraser, CEO of Citi. “Citi is joining the Catalyst program alongside public and private sector leaders to unleash our collective expertise and resources. This partnership complements our significant financings of existing green technology and is truly a down payment for the next generation of climate solutions.”
“Part of our vision at General Motors is to create a world with zero emissions. To realize this future, we need to foster innovative, equitable, and inclusive green technologies, inside and outside our company,” said Mary Barra, Chair and CEO of General Motors. “By joining with some of the world’s leading companies through Breakthrough Energy Catalyst, we’ll be able to accelerate promising clean energy solutions that help build the infrastructure the world needs to meet our collective climate goals.”
“A small number of green technologies will reshape the industrial landscape of the world over the next 5 to 10 years. I am grateful for the opportunity for HSBC to be part of Breakthrough Energy Catalyst to accelerate their development and make them scalable,” said Noel Quinn, Group CEO, plc of HSBC. “I genuinely believe this groundbreaking partnership can help bring these much-needed clean solutions to market and build a more sustainable world.”
“It’s imperative that we accelerate the development of new technology that propels us toward a net zero economy this decade,” said Brad Smith, President and Vice Chair of Microsoft. “By playing all the roles that we can—customer, investor, and now, donor through our $100M grant in Breakthrough Energy Catalyst—Microsoft is committed to working across public and private sectors to help nurture and scale the most promising climate innovations.”
“Last October our company announced its roadmap to carbon neutrality by 2050, which demonstrates our commitment to providing a stable supply of energy and at the same time helping our world to decarbonize. To realize this strategy, we must have a competitive and sustainable solution, making the maximum use of new technology and innovation. Through its offshore wind projects and other businesses, Mitsubishi Corporation has been working proactively to lower the costs of new technologies and decarbonization solutions. With an aim to both supplement and accelerate those efforts, we have decided to join Breakthrough Energy Catalyst.” said Katsuya Nakanishi, President and CEO of Mitsubishi Corporation. “Mitsubishi Corporation will work diligently to contribute to accelerating societal applications of carbon-free businesses and realizing a carbon neutral society on a global scale and lead the initiatives both here in Japan and throughout Asia.”
“Part of being a good neighbor is taking care of the communities around us. State Farm is committed to helping build a more resilient future for our customers and their neighborhoods,” said Jon Farney, SVP, treasurer and chief financial officer at State Farm. “Through this strategic investment, we hope to help Breakthrough Energy Catalyst accelerate the innovation pipeline and the development of technologies and solutions that can make net-zero emissions a reality.”
Breakthrough Energy is proud to work with this group of leading global companies taking serious, courageous steps toward reaching our climate goals. By joining Catalyst, these partners demonstrate they are taking real action and willing to make meaningful investments in the right technologies, which will not only allow them to reach their own climate commitments but give the world a better chance of achieving a net-zero economy by 2050.
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