UK Government-backed Clean Growth Fund, a £101 million venture fund, has led an investment round of £3.6 million into property data and analytics company Kamma.
- The investment will fund the expansion of Kamma’s property data engine that acquires, integrates and calibrates thousands of property data points in order to deliver optimal routes to achieving net zero in the UK property sector.
- The real estate and property sector has proved one of the slowest to decarbonise, in the UK and globally. Out-of-date and inaccurate nature of property data is a key barrier to effective action, resulting in incorrect assessments and erroneous decisions.
- The UK, like the rest of the world, cannot achieve climate goals without addressing the carbon footprint of the built environment.
Kamma has raised £3.6 million in its latest round, led by Clean Growth Fund, including investors such as Triple Point, Pi Labs , Conduit EIS Impact Fund and Kiilto Ventures.
The company’s chief executive officer and co-founder Orla Shields said: “At this crucial juncture in the Built Environment’s fight against climate change, it is particularly valuable to have the support of Clean Growth Fund, one of the leading climate-tech investors in the country.”
“Their decision to invest is testament to the strength of both our technology, and the team that built it. Already ahead of the market, the investment will enable Kamma to move faster and in particular build our services for the commercial property sector. We are resourced and well-positioned to help our clients in the property sector to deliver against challenging net zero goals and to be the data behind net zero.”
What does the company do?
London-based Kamma uses geospatial technology, combining data collection and address-matching technology with analysis to articulate the fastest routes to net zero. Its data can be used in climate change solutions ranging from ESG risk management and reporting to retrofit optimisation.
Kamma’s engine uses multiple sources to provide the most accurate and up-to-date climate data available, supporting net zero strategies. Awarded Green Homes Finance Accelerator funding for its work on retrofit optimisation, Kamma claims it is the only tech firm in the UK to develop a ‘whole market’ proposition.
It says it is also the first to be able to quantify the full emissions footprint of residential property that allows for individual retrofit requirements to be determined, supporting landlords, housing funds and providers, mortgage lenders and energy companies in addressing climate change.
The company says it covers 36 million properties, managing £36 million of risk exposure for 4,000 users.
UK property sector slowest in net zero race
The built environment is responsible for up to 40% of global greenhouse gas emissions and around a third in the UK. A large part of these emissions comes from the energy used in buildings and infrastructure rather than their functional operation.
Indeed, their footprint – often referred to as embodied carbon – encompasses all the emissions generated to make a building, such as the materials being used, the construction process itself, all the fixtures and fittings inside as well as from deconstructing and disposing of it at the end of its lifetime.
In order to reduce the built environment’s impact, new buildings need to be designed with the intent of minimising emissions in each of these stages, while existing ones need to be retrofitted.
Property, however, is one of the slowest sectors in the UK economy to decarbonise, and the out-of-date and inaccurate nature of property data is an active barrier, leading to incorrect assessments and erroneous decisions, according to Kamma. The British Property Federation (BPF) issued a net zero pledge in June 2022, where members must commit to net zero by 2050 at the latest and are expected to set targets and have transition plans. Many companies in the sector signed up from financial bodies like Abrdn and Blackrock to British Land and Lasalle.
Investors see big opportunity in the property sector
The investment will fund the expansion of Kamma’s property data engine that acquires, integrates and calibrates thousands of property data points in order to deliver optimal routes to achieve net zero in the UK property sector – both residential and commercial property. The funding signals investor appetite for innovative solutions that address the issue of embodied carbon.
Susannah McClintock, investment partner at Clean Growth Fund, a £101 million climate venture capital fund backed by the UK Government, said: “With the property sector representing such a large proportion of UK and global emissions, we are excited and impressed by the contribution Kamma can make to enabling net zero in the built environment.”
“Kamma’s technology is already making a contribution to the sector but there is undoubtedly scope and opportunity for Kamma to do so much more. With our investment and active support, we are confident that Orla and her team will build Kamma into a highly successful business, making an important contribution to the net zero challenge.”
SGV TAKE
The UK, like the rest of the world, cannot achieve climate goals without addressing the carbon footprint of the built environment. Technology is a key tool to help the industry to get there, but private sector efforts need to be matched by supportive policy and willingness from decision-makers. The investment in Kamma by Clean Growth Fund suggests that the company is well-placed to deliver in line with the UK’s Clean Growth Strategy.
