Who are the UK’s top clean tech companies?

The UK is home to many companies who are utilising tech to create innovative solutions that help the environment. So, as today is Earth Day, Business Leader decided to focus on the leading clean tech companies for this week’s Business Leader Top 12.

However, if you believe we have missed a company from our list, please send an email to info@businessleader.co.uk and we will add them in.

This list is in no particular order.

Better Origin

Founded in 2019, Cambridge-based Better Origin develop and operate insect bioconversion solutions that allow farmers and food producers to turn food and agricultural wastes into valuable nutrients through insects. The company secured £12m in Series A funding at the start of April, which it plans to use to fix our ‘fundamentally broken’ food chain by upcycling food waste and reducing the 4.5 million tonnes of food waste we see in the UK each year.

Octopus Energy

Since being founded in 2015, sustainable energy suppliers Octopus Energy have grown to become the UK’s fourth-largest energy supplier, supplying more than two million UK homes with energy. The company saw revenues of £1.9bn for 2020/21 and they’ve been recommended by Which? for five years in a row. Their sustainable offering also includes heat pumps, EV charging stations and solar panels.

Satellite Vu

British Earth Observation scale-up Satellite Vu utilises advanced thermal infrared cameras to provide near real-time data on the green credentials of buildings anywhere on the planet. Their tech can also be used for applications within environmental monitoring, sustainable finance, and activity-based intelligence. The company’s valuation recently rose to £20 million after the second round of its Series A funding, plus they recently started measuring and disclosing their own carbon emissions in full.

Spherics Technology

Spherics Technology is an award-winning carbon accounting software that helps businesses measure, mitigate and manage their climate impact. Spherics is a certified B-Corp and they were recently included in Tech Nation’s Net Zero 2.0, a programme designed to support climate-tech companies to scale so they can accelerate their work to help the environment.

Tokamak Energy

A spin-out from the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy (CCFE) in Oxford, Tokamak Energy are pioneering clean energy production through the use of fusion by utilizing devices that combine plasma in a magnetic field along with superconductors. Founded in 2009, the company employs more than 150 people and has raised more than £117m to support its mission. In March 2022, their ST40 spherical tokamak reached the threshold for commercial fusion energy: 100 million degrees Celsius.

Elmo

Elmo is a carbon-neutral electric car monthly subscription service and the world’s first MaaS (Mobility-as-a-Service) platform to include a home charge point, discounted renewable energy and public charging access – which is wrapped into a monthly payment package. Based in London, Elmo’s mission is to help 10,000 people switch to an electric car by 2024, stopping nearly 100,000 tonnes of CO2 from entering the atmosphere each year in the process.

Sourceful

Manchester-based Sourceful is on a mission to make the supply-chain a source of good for business and the planet. To achieve this, their end-to-end sourcing and supply chain platform allows businesses to source, configure and design sustainable packaging whilst their ISO-verified carbon footprint estimation analyses the product choices their clients make through every level of the supply chain.

Sourceful recently raised $20m (£15.2m) in their Series A round, which the company plans to use to continue their expansion in international markets.

Carbon Clean Solutions

Founded in London in 2009, Carbon Clean Solutions develops CO2 capture and carbon separation technology for the industrial and gas industries, helping large-scale emitters become carbon neutral. To date, they have removed more than 1.5 million metric tonnes of carbon from 44 facilities across the world. Carbon Clean Solutions have raised more than £34.3m in funding and have set up offices in India, Spain and the US to aid their mission.

Xampla

Designing natural alternatives to single-use plastics, Xampla is on a mission to replace the single-use plastics we use every day. The company has created the world’s first plant protein material for commercial use and whilst their material performs like plastic, it decomposes naturally. A finalist for the Sustainable Tech Business Award at the 2022 Go:Tech Awards, Xampla has raised $12.2m (£9.4m) to date.

Ember Core

As the world’s first 100% electric intercity bus operator, Ember Core provides sustainable transport from its base in Edinburgh to Dundee, with plans to launch more routes across Scotland this year and plans for their own ultra-rapid charging network. Ember also focuses on improving the passenger experience with comfortable seating, friendly drivers and a chance to book space for a bike or wheelchair to help shift the reliance away from cars.

LAT Water

Set up to tackle the rising environmental cost of water treatment, LAT Water develops energy-efficient solutions for treating wastewater. Their patented technology can lead to operating cost savings of 50-75% despite requiring only waste heat and having low maintenance costs. Headquartered in Thatcham and with an office in China, the company has received more than 11 international patents and more than £7m of investment to date, supporting their mission for sustainable wastewater treatment.

Moixa

Moixa is on a quest to decarbonise our energy system. To do this, they develop AI solutions for residential and commercial use that allow for renewable energy to be used more effectively, such as smart batteries and solar panel systems. The company has raised $24.3m to date and has won numerous awards since it was founded 2004. Whilst Japan is the largest market for its AI-based GridShare platform, the company has also sought to expand across the US and Europe in recent years.