Energy major Total announced Thursday that it will focus its global venture fund on fostering carbon neutrality.

Energy major Total announced Thursday that it will focus its global venture fund on fostering carbon neutrality.

The fund, which will be known as Total Carbon Neutrality Ventures (TCNV), will increase its capital to a cumulative $400 million within five years’ time, Total revealed. Its investments will support start-ups that develop “innovative technologies and solutions which help companies reduce energy consumption or the carbon intensity of their activities”, Total noted.

TCNV will invest globally, focusing on areas such as smart energy, energy storage, smart mobility, bioplastics and recycling, according to Total.

Total highlighted that the fund builds on Total Ventures’ existing portfolio of 35 global start-ups “that directly and indirectly contribute to carbon neutrality”. This portfolio includes Solidia, Sunfire, Scoop, Shyft Power Solutions, Ionic Materials, MTPV, AutoGrid, Stem and OnTruck.

“The Total Carbon Neutrality Ventures fund will fully support Total's ambition to become the responsible energy major. It will allow us to expand the reach of our low carbon- businesses beyond our own borders,” Patrick Pouyanne, chairman and CEO of Total, said in a company statement.

“Over five years, the $400 million fund will invest in start-ups whose technologies or innovative solutions could contribute to carbon neutrality,” he added.

Last week, Total revealed that it will open a digital factory in Paris in early 2020 to further its ambition of becoming the “responsible energy major”. The factory will bring together up to 300 developers, data scientists and other experts, according to Total.

Total has 100,000 employees and is active in more than 130 countries, its website shows. The company traces its roots back to 1924.

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