Delft-based startup Green Basilisk has raised an undisclosed amount of seed money from SHIFT Invest. The capital raised will be used to accelerate the international expansion of the company.
Green Basilisk is a spin-off from Delft University of Technology (DUT). The company has developed a so-called self-healing additive that contains specific bacteria that start producing limestone when in contact with oxygen and water, creating an autonomous repair system that closes cracks in concrete. This enables the company to increase the durability and service lifetime of concrete structures for its clients, while at the same time reducing maintenance, repair and downtime. The self-healing technology was developed by Dr. Henk Jonkers at DUT and is protected with four patents.
The company’s supplement can be added to concrete used in watery environments where it’s often very difficult to do maintenance work and cracks in the concrete can occur says Bart van der Woerd, CEO of Green Basilisk to StartupJuncture. “Dams are examples. But you can also think of water basins, sewage treatment plants, bridges.”
Founded in 2015 Green Basilisk is already active in Germany, Belgium, UK, Japan, South Korea, China and India, but Van der Woerd aims to invest heavily in Asia. Van der Woerd: “70 percent of the global concrete consumption takes place in Asia. Therefore this is a very important market for us and therefore we are right now in the process of building a factory in South Korea that can fulfil the demand for our products locally.”
Van der Woerd is also active in the USA. “Right now we have a partnership with the American Waterway and Dams Authority and are supporting the US government in their nationwide program to repair and replace the country’s dams” says van der Woerd.
“We are impressed by this highly innovative bio-based solution which has the potential to significantly reduce the carbon footprint of the construction sector, currently accounting for 5 percent of global CO2 emissions”, says Bram Ledeboer, Investment Partner at SHIFT Invest. “This investment enables us to hire new people to do more outreach and marketing and sales. Also on behalf of our existing shareholder Delft Enterprises, we are happy to welcome our new partner SHIFT Invest”, says Van der Woerd.