Fluxnium Raises $7M Seed Round to Extract Uranium from Seawater

Fluxnium Inc., a Los Angeles-based technology company focused on developing a source of uranium from seawater, raised a $7 million seed round led by Congruent Ventures, with participation from Constellation Technology Ventures, the venture investing organization within Constellation, the nation’s largest producer of reliable and clean energy, and Active Impact Investments, Canada’s largest climate technology seed fund.

“The United States imports more than 90% of its uranium supply at a time when nuclear power is increasingly seen as a solution to growing demand for electricity driven by economic growth,” said Jeff Green, chief executive and founder of Fluxnium, in a statement. “Fluxnium is developing a new domestic and sustainable supply of uranium, passively adsorbed from seawater on proven offshore infrastructure at a cost projected to compete with conventional mining, with no tailings or ground water concerns.”

Proceeds will go towards further development, pilot testing and scale-up of Fluxnium’s technology platform that is designed to extract uranium adsorbed in seawater, a critical mineral needed for the civilian nuclear fuel cycle and defense supply chain.

Seawater holds roughly a thousand times more than all currently identified terrestrial deposits of uranium combined. The challenge is that dissolved uranium exists at very low concentrations. Fluxnium addresses this challenge through its proprietary high-surface-area fiber, recently developed with a leading U.S. national laboratory, that passively adsorbs uranium as seawater moves past it.

“With the current uranium market dynamics, there is a new path to making the ocean one of the lowest-cost sources in the world. Congruent is excited to support Fluxnium as it unlocks the ocean’s potential as a major contributor to a diverse and robust domestic nuclear fuel supply chain,” said Kevin Kopczynski, partner at Congruent Ventures, in a statement.

Fluxnium’s fiber deploys on longline systems in open water, the same passive marine infrastructure proven by seaweed and mussel farms, which is then retrieved, processed and redeployed. With accelerating demand for nuclear power that could double within the next 15 years, plant operators are focused on cost-competitive and sustainable fuel supply beyond uranium mining.

“We have strong conviction that Jeff and co-founder Jim McDermott, with their prior successes taking hardtech ideas to commercial reality, are the ideal team to seize this opportunity,” said Tom Boddez, general partner at Active Impact Investments, in a statement.

Information for this story was provided by Fluxnium.