More than half of all residential buildings in Germany are rated “poor” when it comes to energy efficiency. Hamburg-based startup Reneo has landed €600 million ($619 million) to decarbonize these “stranded real estate assets.”
The capital infusion came from German family-owned real estate businesses Goldbeck and Bauwens, German real estate investor Peakside Capital and European private equity and VC firms Foundamental and Lakestar.
France’s Eurazio also participated via its €400 million second impact Smart City Fund, which backs climatetech and sustainability solutions, while American investment banking group Goldman Sachs provided a senior asset-backed financing facility.
Sustainable housing
The startup’s tech platform, the Reneo Core System, uses AI to analyze data and optimize resource and government subsidy usage to cut construction costs and reduce energy consumption by up to 60%. “Real estate is one of the few remaining sectors where the challenge of decarbonisation and meeting net zero targets is yet to be fully addressed,” Peakside’s Boris Schran said.
Reneo invested €200 million last year to acquire over 600 residential units in Berlin and Hamburg that will undergo energy-efficiency retrofitting to meet the demand for sustainable housing.
Separately, the company set up a joint venture with Peakside that will invest around €500 million in debt and equity to upgrade the energy efficiency of multi-family houses.
