GreenTech startup FuelGems announced the completion of a successful funding round that raised a total of $928,690. The fundraising was carried out through Wefunder, with primary investment from Austin-based venture capital fund and startup accelerator Sputnik ATX.
FuelGems’ revolutionary fuel additive uses nanoparticles to transform the operation of diesel and gasoline-powered engines. With the FuelGems additive, carbon emissions drop by 9%, poisonous carbon monoxide emissions by 15%, and the release of unburnt hydrocarbons and other dangerous particulate matter falls by up to 50%. Fuel efficiency also rises by up to 9%.
FuelGems’ additive is cost-effective, adding just 2 cents onto the cost of a gallon of gasoline, and requires only a microdose of 1-5 grams for 260 gallons of fuel. The company forecasts $400+ million revenue by year 6 of operations, thanks to widespread public concern about the impact of vehicle fumes on climate change and public health.
The strength of FuelGems’ solution is underscored by the amount of interest and traction the startup is already seeing from multi-billion-dollar oil and gas corporations like BP British Petroleum, Suncor, and Marubeni, as well as from the Australian Department of Defense.
Sputnik invested $50,000 in FuelGems before the Wefunder got underway, and then added another $35,000 during the course of the Wefunder, bringing their total investment to $85,000. The partners at Sputnik unanimously agreed to support FuelGems after evaluating the company’s unique value proposition. They are in a unique position to assess FuelGems’ technology and capabilities, thanks to Dr. Oksana Malysheva, managing partner at Sputnik, who has a PhD in physics. It was Dr. Malysheva who evaluated FuelGems’ technical abilities, and she was convinced by the scientific efficacy of the FuelGems solution.
Volodymyr Khmurych, an angel investor and COO of UFuture, made a personal investment in FuelGems by taking a lead investor role in the Wefunder campaign. He said, “Their team and product will change the world when it comes to using gasoline and diesel. FuelGems will save lives…What I love even more is the fact that such a small amount of nanoparticles is needed to treat fuel. This lets them price multiple times cheaper than other fuel additives and win a huge market share very quickly…I believe the company has incredible growth ahead and I am very excited to get in with FuelGems at an early stage and to be the lead investor in this deal.” Additional angel investors in FuelGems have backgrounds from Shell, Tesla, Battery Ventures and Sierra Ventures.
Serial entrepreneur and investor Jeff Sudman adds,“I am strongly passionate about investing my capital into startups that have a potential massive impact on our planet and people. I have a very strict criteria that I look for, few things to mention such as a dedicated and talented team with proven track record, unique and protected IP, extensive testing of this IP, ability to have a massive impact to that industry, and vision to the investor to see an actual future return. The remaining 50% of my decision falls upon how big the impact will be on our planet and people. I feel that FuelGems has hit all of my requirements and more.”
About the founder:
Kirill Gichunts, CEO of FuelGems, is a seasoned entrepreneur and investor who has invested in and supported over 15 startups and has achieved one previous exit as a venture capitalist and one previous exit as a member of a founding management team. He discovered the value of clean technology during his studies at UC Berkeley.
