GrainCorp Ventures has participated in a Series A funding round for Australian fertiliser technology developer PlasmaLeap, as investors look to support lower-emissions inputs for agriculture.
The investment round raised nearly A$30 million and was led by the Gates Foundation, Investible and Yara Growth Ventures, with additional backing from several strategic investors including GrainCorp Ventures.
Sydney-based PlasmaLeap is developing modular reactors designed to produce ammonia and nitrate using air, water and renewable electricity. The technology aims to enable on-farm or regional production of nitrogen fertiliser, potentially reducing reliance on fossil-fuel-intensive manufacturing and long-distance supply chains.
PlasmaLeap chief executive and co-founder Frere Byrne said the funding would help move the technology from trials toward commercial deployment.
“The backing of these strategic and institutional investors is strong validation of both the PlasmaLeap technology and the scale of the opportunity,” Byrne said.
“This funding allows us to move from successful trials into real-world deployment, demonstrating how clean, decentralised fertiliser and chemical production can transform agriculture, reduce emissions and guarantee sovereign security of critical resources like food and fuel.”
Funding from the Series A round will support the development of fertiliser hubs in New South Wales and Tasmania, expand field trials and further advance the company’s technology platform.
PlasmaLeap’s reactor technology aims to reduce these impacts by producing nitrogen inputs locally using renewable energy sources. The company’s modular systems are designed to integrate with existing fertiliser supply chains while allowing production closer to farms.
Yara Growth Ventures investment director Stian Nygaard said the technology had potential to reduce the climate footprint of agricultural inputs.
“PlasmaLeap has developed a breakthrough platform for fertiliser with lower CO2 emissions, delivering step-change improvements in energy efficiency,” Nygaard said.
“We see strong potential for this technology to scale competitively and reduce the climate impact of farming.”
GrainCorp Strategy and Ventures manager Zack Atlas said the technology is a major leap forward.
“These pilot hubs will play an important role in testing how the technology fits into existing farming systems, how reliably it produces fertiliser under practical conditions, and what operational model could work best for growers,” Atlas said.
“PlasmaLeap’s fertiliser technology has the potential to help growers reduce costs and drive meaningful decarbonisation efforts.”