Revealed: The valuations behind Sweden's 15 highest-funded impact companies

A long-time powerhouse in Europe's impact investment scene, Sweden ranked first in the EU for impact investments in 2023, according to Dealroom data, and second in the continent after the UK.

Despite ongoing economic uncertainty last year, capital continued to flow into the country’s impact sector, with energy proving the biggest draw for fresh cash.

Topping the list of Swedish impact startups raising the most funding in 2024 are green steel challenger Stegra, heat pump company Aira, and battery storage player Polarium.

Magnus Lundin, Nordic investment director at EIT InnoEnergy—the EU-backed fund driving innovation in sustainable energy—tells Impact Loop it’s no surprise that energy remains Sweden’s hottest impact sector.

"The ongoing energy transition requires a mix of technologies and services to ensure a stable and sustainable grid,” he says. “Renewable energy is becoming cheaper, but it must be combined with battery solutions and smart grids to manage fluctuations in production".

Energy’s investment hotspots

Within the energy sector, several niches have caught investors’ attention, including renewable energy (CorPower Ocean), smart grids (Polarium), energy aggregators (Flower), and energy efficiency (Qvantum).

Heat pumps and energy efficiency are also expanding markets, reflecting a European-wide demand, adds Lundin.

Aira raised around €180 million (SEK 2 billion), and competitor Qvantum about €50 million (SEK 560 million) last year.

"Heat pumps are [already] common in the Nordics, but in Europe—especially Germany and the UK—there’s huge potential," Lundin says.

He argues that major investments aren’t always about groundbreaking new tech – they can just as easily be about smart business opportunities with solid execution. Heat pumps are a perfect example. Not only is there huge untapped demand across Europe, but when connected and remotely controlled, they can also help stabilise the grid by shifting energy use when needed.

Sustainable steel draws billion-euro investments

Industrial sustainability and green manufacturing have also attracted major funding, particularly in the sustainable steel sector, thanks to Stegra, which is building the world's first commercial green steel plant in Boden, in northern Sweden.

Like heat pump company Aira, Stegra is a company backed by Harald Mix, a prominent Swedish investor and co-founder of Vargas, the investment firm behind several prominent Nordic climate-tech ventures, including battery manufacturer Northvolt.

As Impact Loop recently reported, Japan’s state-owned Development Bank of Japan (DBJ) has acquired a stake in Stegra for an undisclosed amount. Other heavyweight backers include the EU Innovation Fund and Kinnevik, the Stockholm-based investment group founded by the Stenbeck family, one of Sweden’s most influential business dynasties, known for shaping the country’s telecom, media, and investment sectors and for backing digital and sustainability-focused ventures.

Here’s Impact Loop’s ranking of the largest Swedish impact funding rounds of 2024, along with the latest available company valuations.