Forge Minerals completes £1m pre-seed funding round and opens first laboratory in Edinburgh

The round was co-led by Sustainable Ventures and The Conduit Impact Fund with co-investment from Old College Capital the University of Edinburgh’s in-house venture investment fund, One Planet Capital, Kappika Ventures, and Scottish Enterprise. 

Forge Minerals’ was founded in 2024 with the ambition to turn waste carbon dioxide into high-quality mineral products that can directly replace far more carbon-intensive materials used across industry today. Its initial focus is on minerals such as magnesium carbonate, supplying applications where purity, consistency and regulatory compliance are critical. 

By incorporating carbon dioxide into mineral products, Forge’s approach enables a materially lower carbon footprint than conventional production routes, while remaining compatible with existing supply chains and end-use requirements. The company is focused on displacement of carbon intensive materials — supplying minerals that customers need, but with substantially lower embedded emissions. 

To coincide with the new funding, Forge Minerals has opened its first laboratory as the first tenant of the newly launched Edinburgh Innovation Hub, a world class scale up facility, where it will conduct systematic process development and validation trials in preparation for scale-up. 

The funding will support laboratory and pilot-scale trials, customer validation of product specifications, and continued development of the production process as Forge works towards initial commercial deployment and future industrial scale. 

Ian Spencer, Founder and CEO of Forge Minerals, said: 

“Our goal is to make waste CO₂ useful by locking it into high purity mineral products that industry already relies on. By replacing today’s carbon-intensive minerals with high-purity alternatives at scale, the impact is structural rather than incremental. We are delighted to have the support of an exceptional group of investors, enabling us to deliver the detailed work needed to make this transition real.” 

Forge Minerals has filed a patent application covering elements of its production process and continues to build technical and operational know-how as the company scales. 

It will also continue its longstanding relationship with the University of Edinburgh’s Applied Geosciences Laboratory, working with academics such as Professors Katriona Edelmann and Stuart Gilfinnan. 

Joshua Armistead-Wood at Sustainable Ventures, said: 

“At Sustainable Ventures we’re focusing our attention and capital on novel industrial technologies that unlock new capabilities and avenues for decarbonisation at commercially viable price points. While still at an early stage, the lab scale validation Forge Minerals has achieved represents a promising step towards carbon neutral carbonate manufacturing with huge potential ramifications across a number of high priority sectors. We’re excited to support Ian, Matt and Sylvain and look forward to the next steps on this journey.” 

Eva-Maria Dimitriadis, Managing Partner at the Conduit Impact Fund, said 

“Forge Minerals’ solution sits at the very heart of our Sustainable Industry thesis and we are excited to be bringing this technology into our portfolio. There are four elements that drew us to this investment. Firstly, a highly experienced, multidisciplinary team. Secondly, a laser focus on decarbonisation and eventually a carbon negative solution. Thirdly, a smart approach to using waste emissions to create valuable outcomes. And finally, determination to achieve price parity so that clients are not paying a green premium for a superior product.” 

Katharine Fox, Head of Investment at Old College Capital, said: 

“Old College Capital is proud to invest in Forge Minerals, a company that has collaborated with our expert academics in the University of Edinburgh’s Applied Geosciences Lab to develop and test its innovative technology. The company’s novel production process for transforming waste CO2 into stable, high-quality carbonate minerals has the potential to create disruption in the industry and this, in combination with the strength of the team, has the potential for significant environmental impact. We are excited to support Forge as they scale this technology.” 

Derek Shaw, Director of Entrepreneurship & Investment Scottish Enterprise, said:  

“This investment underscores our commitment to using our world-class innovation capabilities to increase the number of ambitious companies scaling up in Scotland, helping them create quality, high-value jobs and compete and lead in international markets. There are several industries of the future where Scotland has global strengths, including critical industries, and building on that through support for companies such as Forge Minerals Ltd is crucial to their continued growth.” 

The company is headquartered at the newly built lab facility - Edinburgh Innovation Hub - and works with industrial partners and downstream processors to integrate low-carbon minerals into existing supply chains.