Seamoretech secures €1.1 million to scale brine valorisation

By Grace Kim

Seamoretech secured €1.1 million in the first closing of its Seed round, bringing total funding raised to €3 million. The Porto-based CleanTech startup said the round included Rypples, 7Seas Capital and Crédito Agrícola, investors with experience in OceanTech and ClimateTech industries.

Seamoretech converts desalination brine into purified freshwater and critical minerals. Founded in 2021 by Sofia Delgado and Eva Sousa as a spin-off of the University of Porto’s Faculty of Engineering (FEUP), the startup develops technology for a waste stream that industries have long treated as a liability and discarded into the ocean.

CEO and co-founder Sofia Delgado said: “We are entering Seamoretech’s next phase with a clear ambition: to scale our technology, accelerate our market entry, produce freshwater at a lower cost, and establish a European reference in critical raw materials recovery, while helping protect marine ecosystems.”

Delgado’s statement ties the round to four goals: scaling the technology, accelerating market entry, lowering freshwater costs and establishing a European reference in critical-raw-materials recovery, with marine protection built into the model.

What does Seamoretech recover from brine?

Seamoretech describes brine as a highly concentrated saline waste stream. Its proprietary brine valorisation technology recovers purified freshwater and high-value minerals, including magnesium, calcium, copper and lithium, from that waste stream.

The company packages the process in a containerised, plug-and-play system built around forward osmosis. The system is designed to achieve Zero Liquid Discharge, meaning nothing returns to the ocean. It is also designed to integrate with existing plant infrastructure without operational downtime or upfront capital expenditure for plant operators.

Seamoretech says its system:

• Doubles freshwater production yield.
• Cuts energy consumption by 50% compared with reverse osmosis.
• Reduces operating costs by 30%.
• Lowers carbon emissions by up to 80% relative to conventional mineral mining.

In plain terms, Seamoretech says its system produces more freshwater with lower energy use and operating costs while returning nothing to the ocean.

What will the €1.1 million fund?

The new money will support Seamoretech’s next phase of industrialisation and commercial expansion. The expansion plan centers on:

• Industrialising the brine-valorisation system.
• A planned launch in Spain next year.
• Building a pilot-project pipeline across several markets, including Spain and Egypt.

Seamoretech has already demonstrated a collaboration in Spain and says its containerised system can deploy rapidly on existing plant infrastructure. The promise of no operational downtime or upfront capital expenditure for plant operators is central to that rollout.

The company also plans to open a second closing of the Seed round in the coming months. Rypples, 7Seas Capital and Crédito Agrícola have joined a company whose total funding stands at €3 million, with industrialisation and Spanish expansion ahead.

The first closing supports a Spanish launch and a wider pilot pipeline, while a second Seed closing remains planned for the coming months.

What is Seamoretech’s 2040 ambition?

Seamoretech frames its work around two of Europe’s major priorities: water scarcity and securing domestic supply of critical raw materials. The company says recovering minerals such as lithium and magnesium from a local, fully traceable source can reduce dependence on conventional extraction while protecting marine ecosystems.

The company’s larger objective is to establish a European reference in critical-raw-materials recovery. Seamoretech’s stated goal is to reduce global reliance on new mineral extraction by 30% by 2040, while producing more freshwater with less energy and operating cost.

The near-term test is operational: whether a system designed for existing industrial infrastructure can support the planned Spanish launch and convert pilots in Spain and Egypt into wider deployments. The second Seed closing, planned for the coming months, will determine how much additional capital Seamoretech has for that expansion.

The next proof points are the Spanish launch next year, the second Seed closing in the coming months and pilot conversion in Spain and Egypt. Together, they will test whether Seamoretech can turn its €3 million in total funding into a European foothold in freshwater and critical-mineral recovery.