Innovation Kyoto 2021 Investment Limited Partnership ("KYOTO-iCAP No.2 Fund"), with Kyoto University Innovation Capital Corporation ("Kyoto iCAP") (Head Office: Sakyo-ku, Kyoto; President & CEO: Ko Kusumi) as the general partner, has made a new investment in Phytolipid Technologies Co., Ltd. (Head office: Midori-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture; CEO: Hiroyuki Ohta), a start-up company that utilizes the results of research at national universities.

Overview of this investment
Phytolipid Technologies (PLT) is a startup from Tokyo University of Science (formerly Tokyo Institute of Technology), which is engaged in the production of useful substances using microalgae and the development of production systems for such substances.

Toward carbon neutrality, a long-term goal common to all human societies, there is a need to propose solutions that can pursue the dual goals of "environmental value," such as reducing CO2 emissions, and "economic value," such as the ability to economically produce large quantities of high-value substances. Under these circumstances, Professor Emeritus Hiroyuki Ohta of Tokyo University of Science has been focusing on "Nannochloropsis," a type of microalgae, since his tenure at Tokyo Tech, and has been conducting research on it for many years.

Nannochloropsis has the following characteristics: 1) it can accumulate high amounts of oil and fat while only supplying CO2 as a carbon source (no external supply of sugars), 2) it can realize low-cost production of fuels such as SAF (Sustainable Aviation Fuel) due to its historical experience in mass culture, and 3) it can be a short-term revenue source due to its high content of omega-3 fatty acids, which are high in price. 4) High omega-3 fatty acid content, which can be used as a short-term revenue source. PLT was established to maximize the lipid production potential of Nannochloropsis and contribute to society.

The scale of manufacturing experiments with PLT has reached more than the laboratory level, and we will work with a group of companies conducting joint research to promote further scale-up of their proprietary culture and extraction technologies to lower costs and acquire more customers.

Kyoto-iCAP expects PLT technology to make a significant contribution to mitigating climate change, and in collaboration with Kyoto Capital Partners, Mitsubishi UFJ Capital, Focus Incubate, Hiroshima Venture Capital, Leave a Nest Capital, and SMBC Venture Capital, has allocated a total of 220 million yen in third-party of the capital increase, 80 million yen was invested by KYOTO-iCAP.

Overview of Phytolipid Technologies Co., Ltd.
Establishment : April 2021
Business : Production and sales of useful lipids from plants and algae
Head Office: Midori-ku, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture
CEO: Hiroyuki Ohta
HP: https://phytolipidtech.co.jp/

About Kyoto University Innovation Capital, Co. Ltd. (Kyoto iCAP):
As a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kyoto University, KYOTO-iCAP provides investment and other business support to companies that utilize research results generated by Kyoto University and other national universities. We currently operate the Innovation Kyoto 2016 Investment Limited Partnership ("KYOTO-iCAP 1 Fund") (established in January 2016) with a total value of 16 billion yen and the KYOTO-iCAP 2 Fund (established in January 2021) with a total value of 18.1 billion yen. The KYOTO-iCAP No. 1 Fund has a maturity of up to 20 years, and the KYOTO-iCAP No. 2 Fund has a maturity of up to 17 years, making it possible to provide long-term support for the practical application of research results from Kyoto University, which has strengths in basic research. In addition, KYOTO-iCAP No. 2 Fund will invest a portion of the funds in ventures originating from national universities other than Kyoto University.

Contact information for inquiries
Kyoto University Innovation Capital, Co. Ltd.
36-1 Yoshida Honmachi, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8317, Japan
Osami Kono, Senior Officer, Business Development Department
TEL: 075-753-7588 FAX: 075-753-7592
E-mail: info@kyoto-unicap.co.jp