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ETH Zurich Spin-off, Switzerland
Synhelion
Invest alongside Swiss, Cemex, SMS Group, ENI, Amag, and more.
Synhelion's technology converts sunlight and air into liquid transportation fuels that are fully compatible with the existing global fuel infrastructure and directly replace fossil fuels to power planes, automobiles, ships, and more.
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The business model
Turning regular fuels into renewable energy.
As shocking as it might sound, Synhelion does precisely that: Turning sunlight and air back into fuels. Synhelion's solution combines state-of-the-art solar tower systems with proprietary high-temperature thermochemical processes. Self-contained plants that operate independently from electrical grid infrastructure make Synhelion's technology quickly and broadly scalable worldwide.
Solar fuel production
Synhelion generates eco-friendly synthetic solar fuels by harnessing concentrated solar energy, significantly reducing carbon emissions.
Industrial Heat Solutions
Synhelion's solar process heat systems provide high-temperature heat to industries (e.g., Cement production), fostering sustainable manufacturing and reducing environmental impact.
Licensing Model
Synhelion might license its cutting-edge solar technology, empowering partners to produce renewable fuels independently.
Why we're investing
Synhelion is clearly one of those gems one can’t say no to. It offers a jaw-dropping solution to play a significant role in the environmental crisis combined with an impressive lineup of partners, investors, and incubators (ETH Zurich). Synhelion has seen a spectacular rise, attracting many top-tier institutional investors and worldwide media.
Synhelion uses solar heat to convert CO2 into solar fuels. Its solutions combine state-of-the-art solar tower systems with proprietary high-temperature thermochemical processes. Self-contained plants that operate independently from electrical grid infrastructure make Synhelion's technology quickly and broadly scalable worldwide.
Synhelion is currently building the world’s first industrial solar fuel plant in Germany. By 2025, they aim to commission their first commercial solar fuel plant in Spain. The subsequent global roll-out of Synhelion's technology will contribute to improved global energy security and independence from fossil fuel sources.
Moonshot has been an early investor in Synhelion and has been part of its meteoric rise and success. We are committed to ongoing, long-term investments in Synhelion, have great relationships with the management, and are directly on the cap table. Other cap table investors have always absorbed exits from existing investors via ROFR, and shares have never seen a secondary placement.
Ruag, Swiss, Lufthansa, Amag, Wood, Eni, and many more have already signed off-take agreements. Synhelion has established a solid international media presence, yet the firepower hasn't even been unpacked. With global demand for independent renewable energy production, we expect unstoppable demand for Synhelion's solar fuels and technology.
The Swiss and German government are both supporting the development of Synhelion. Synhelion has an outstanding mix of visionary private investors, strategic, influential long-term industrial investors such as Cemex, Eni, Wood, Orchilla, and SMS Concast, part of the SMS group, and various private investors and syndicates.
Impressive co-investors
Synhelion's investor lineup is impressive due to the blend of established industrial and forward-thinking private investors, creating enormous synergies.
Synhelion’s breakthrough
Synhelion successfully tested its 250 kW receiver pilot and reached outlet temperatures beyond 1’550°C – 350°C more than any receiver ever built and 550°C more than any receiver ever made on that scale. This world record proves Synhelion can operate its fuel processes with concentrated sunlight.
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Milestones
First lab demonstration of syngas production in a solar reactor at ETH Zurich.
World’s first solar kerosene from H2O and CO2 in the lab at ETH Zurich.
Synhelion SA was founded.
Synhelion developed the idea for its breakthrough technology.
Joint Collaboration Agreement with Eni to industrialize Synhelion’s fuel technology.
Merger with Sunredox GmbH, contributing extensive expertise in reactor technology.
The solar mini-refinery at ETH Zurich produces the world’s first carbon-neutral fuel from ambient air and sunlight.
The 250 kW Synhelion solar receiver pilot at the DLR Synlight reaches world record outlet temperatures beyond 1’500°C.
Started collaboration with Lufthansa Group, SWISS, and Edelweiss.
Memorandum of Understanding signed with Zurich Airport for fuel uptake.
Research Collaboration Agreement with CEMEX, one of the largest building materials companies in the world.
Synhelion partnered with Wood, a global leader in consulting and engineering.
Synhelion pushed ahead with internationalization and acquired German experts in concentrated solar power technology Heliokon GmbH.
Switzerland’s largest automobile importer AMAG Group, makes its first investment in Synhelion with its climate and innovation fund.
Synhelion and CEMEX produce the world’s first solar cement.
SWISS is going to be the world’s first airline to use Synhelion solar fuel.
Synhelion is the first company in the world to succeed in producing syngas on an industrial scale using only solar heat as an energy source.
Synhelion started construction of DAWN – the world’s first industrial demonstration plant to produce solar fuels using solar heat.
The U.S. Department of Energy awarded US$ 3.2 million to Synhelion’s joint project with Cemex and Sandia National Laboratories as well as US$ 2.7 million to the joint project with the University of Florida.
Synhelion and Cemex scaled their technology to industrially viable levels. This includes the continuous production of clinker, the most energy-intensive part of cement manufacturing, using only solar heat.
The key people
It all started with a crazy idea at ETH Zurich. What if we could reverse combustion? The idea worked – at first on paper, then in the lab, and finally in the field.
In 2016, Synhelion was founded to bring solar fuels to market. With its pioneering technology, they want to create a global impact and effectively reduce CO2 emissions.
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Dr. Gianluca Ambrosetti
PhD in Physics/Nanotechnology
Dr. Philipp Good
PhD in Mechanical Engineering/Solar Energy
Hans Hess
Accomplished entrepreneur, manager, investor
We've asked the founders:
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Is there a chemical difference between solar fuels and conventional fuels?
In principle, solar fuels are identical to conventional fuels. However, they contain fewer impurities, which means they emit less noxious gases when burned. A win-win situation for the environment!
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What types of solar fuels can you produce?
We can produce any type of solar fuel: kerosene, gasoline, diesel, methanol, hydrogen, synthetic crude oil, and many more. This is possible because we produce hydrocarbon chains – and simply put, and fuels are nothing else but hydrocarbon chains of different lengths.
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Do solar fuels require special combustion engines?
No, solar fuels are a drop-in technology, which means they can replace fossil fuels without changing the existing global fuel infrastructure. They are compatible with existing internal combustion engines and jet engines.
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What’s the difference between your solar fuels and e-fuels?
Both solar fuels and e-fuels are synthetic fuels, and there are more. Terms like “biofuel,” “synfuel,” and “e-fuel” are often used interchangeably. However, there are important differences between the various types of synthetic fuels regarding production, scalability, and sustainability. Synhelion's blog gives an overview of the different types of synthetic fuels.
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How much will your solar fuels cost?
We target a production cost below EUR 1 per liter by 2030. Our goal is to reach production costs competitive with other sustainable fuel technologies.
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Could your technology also be used to produce heating oil or oil for the chemical industry?
Yes, that would be possible. However, we are focusing on the transportation sector because it will continue to rely on energy-dense liquid fuels due to demanding requirements for mobile energy storage.
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Is it really possible to reverse combustion?
Yes, it is. When conventional fuels are burnt with oxygen, they release heat, CO2, and water vapor. Synhelion’s technology reverses this process. With the help of solar heat, we recombine water vapor and CO2 into hydrocarbon fuels.
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Can your technology help to solve the climate crisis?
The transportation industry accounts for approximately 25 percent – or 8 billion tons – of manmade CO2 emissions per year. CO2 is the principal greenhouse gas contributing to global warming. Replacing fossil fuels with solar fuels is therefore one of the much-needed solutions to fight climate change. However, Synhelion believes that to combat climate change and its related problems, it is important that many different, new technologies and innovations come together.
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Is solar fuel technology scalable to cover global demand?
Yes, because solar fuels are produced from abundant resources, and the solar fields are installed on non-arable land. An independent study assessing the geographical potential concludes that solar fuels could cover 50 times the current global jet fuel demand.
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Where can your solar fuel production sites be located?
Ideal conditions can be found in desert and high insolation areas around the world. For efficient production, we need a direct normal irradiation (DNI) above 1’800 kWh/m2. Check out the Global Solar Atlas to find out where solar fuel plants could be located.
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When will this technology be ready to go on the market?
We are currently building our first industrial plant for the production of carbon-neutral solar fuel in Jülich, Germany. Industrial solar fuel production will start in Germany in 2024, and by 2025, we plan to commission the first commercial production facility in Spain. Within the next ten years, we are planning to ramp up production capacity to produce 875 million liters of solar fuel per year, enough to cover about half the kerosene fueled in Switzerland. By 2040, we aim to produce 50 billion liters of fuel per year.
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What markets do you focus on?
Synhelion’s mission is to support the decarbonization of the transportation sector, especially those sectors that are difficult to electrify, such as aviation and shipping.
In road transportation, electrification plays a key role in reducing CO2-emissions. While electromobility can be rolled out quickly in some regions of the world, such as Europe, it will take much longer in other regions to significantly reduce the number of vehicles with internal combustion engines (ICE). Studies show that there will be many remaining ICE vehicles around the world that will also need to be powered sustainably to meet net-zero emission targets by 2050. As a complementary solution to road electrification, Synhelion’s solar fuels can help achieve these targets.
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What is new about your technology? Why hasn’t it been developed before?
Thermochemical production of solar fuels requires extremely high process temperatures. We solved key challenges in the transformation of solar radiation into process heat and in thermal energy storage. Furthermore, we developed a unique technology to produce syngas. By combining these innovation fronts, we can achieve unprecedented efficiency.
Valuation Comparables
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Investment Process
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Potential for liquidity
Moonshot acts as a “match-maker” via the in-house “Bulletin Board” should an investor require early liquidity.
The auto-adjusted return will be added to your securities (shares/bonds/certificates) as a default base-price finding in our investor network of over 10,000 active investors.
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