Plastic Omnium has become co-sponsor and member of the Advisory Board Committee of the AP Ventures fund, a venture capital firm headquartered in London and specialising in hydrogen and fuel cells. Its existing sponsors include Mirai Creation Fund, in which Toyota and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) are seed LPs, Mitsubishi Corporation, Anglo American Platinum and the South African investment fund PIC. Plastic Omnium's commitment amounts to $30 million over the fund's lifetime.
With this investment, the Plastic Omnium Group confirms hydrogen as a strategic development axis, contributing additional resources to AP Ventures for its continued investments, on a global scope, in innovative companies in the upcoming fields of hydrogen, fuel cells and electric mobility.
The investment by Plastic Omnium comes shortly after the opening of two new R&D centres in July 2019: Deltatech, in Brussels, to conduct advanced research on clean energies, and Omegatech, in Wuhan, China, to develop Asian projects and hydrogen.
Félicie Burelle, Senior Executive Vice-President, Strategy and Development, at Compagnie Plastic Omnium, commented: “The automotive world is living through tremendous technological disruption; we are accelerating and diversifying our strategy for innovation which will allow us to provide essential technology solutions for clean and carbon-free cars. Investing in AP Ventures alongside major industrial players demonstrates Plastic Omnium‘s commitment to the development of the hydrogen ecosystem.”