Nanotechnology startup Vimano raises Rs 25 crore from Ankur Capital

Nanotechnology startup Vimano will use the fresh capital to develop low-cost membranes that can improve the performance of clean energy systems, including batteries for energy storage and devices. Vimano claims its membrane platform addresses key bottlenecks in the energy transition—especially the high cost of green hydrogen production and the lack of affordable long-duration energy storage (LDES).

Nanotechnology startup Vimano has raised Rs 25 crore in a seed funding round led by Ankur Capital, marking the first investment from the early-stage venture firm’s newly launched third fund.The funding will help Vimano develop membranes that can lower the cost and improve the performance of clean energy systems, including batteries for energy storage and devices used to produce green hydrogen.It also plans to initiate pilot projects with strategic partners, expand its team, and set up scalable manufacturing processes for its membranes.

Founded in 2019 by materials scientists Murari Ramkumar and Nagesh Kini, Vimano develops ion-conductive membranes designed to reduce costs and improve the efficiency of clean energy technologies. The technologies include redox flow batteries, electrolysers for green hydrogen, and Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cells, which are used in transportation, stationary power systems, and portable electronics.Vimano claims its membrane platform addresses key bottlenecks in the energy transition—especially the high cost of green hydrogen production and the lack of affordable long-duration energy storage (LDES).

“Over the past five years, we have worked relentlessly to develop a platform that can significantly improve efficiency and reduce costs for long-duration energy storage and green hydrogen production. This investment will enable us to accelerate our commercialisation efforts and bring our high-performance membranes to market at scale,” said Murari Ramkumar, CEO of Vimano. In August 2024, Ankur Capital, which backs startups in agritech, climate and deeptech, received fresh capital commitments from existing investors British International Investment (BII) and MacArthur Foundation for its third fund, which has a corpus target of Rs 1,200 crore ($150 million).

It had also raised capital from US International Development Finance Corporation and Self-Reliant India Fund.“We are excited to partner with Vimano as they hit a crucial inflection point..

. We believe Vimano’s membranes can reshape how energy is stored across multiple formats — with green hydrogen alone projected to grow nearly 10X to over $60 billion by 2030,” said Ritu Verma, managing partner at Ankur Capital..