C5 Capital raising $750M nuclear energy fund6 Jun 2025 23:51
Sibanye-Stillwater’s - and by extension Neo’s - relatively new nuclear energy partner:
https://www.axios.com/pro/climate-deals/2025/05/27/c5-capital-nuclear-energy-fund-andre-pienaar
Exclusive: C5 Capital raising $750M nuclear energy fund
May 27, 2025
Investment firm C5 Capital is raising a $750 million growth equity fund focused on the nuclear energy supply chain.
Why it matters: It's one of the first funds explicitly targeting advanced reactors, even as they remain years from coming online.
The big picture: Nuclear energy is the single largest source of 24/7 zero-emission electricity in the U.S., generating about 19% of the country's electricity.
It's also exceptionally slow-moving, with heavy safety regulation and an aging reactor fleet, though a raft of startups aim to reinvigorate the sector with advanced small reactors and next-gen fusion energy systems.
Driving the news: C5 Capital is targeting startups across the nuclear energy supply chain, from critical minerals producers to reactor developers, though brings a particular interest in software and automation.
"The nuclear sector is one of the least digitized segments of the energy sector," CEO André Pienaar tells Axios Pro.
The latest: The London-based firm, which also has a D.C. office, started raising its nuclear-focused Global Energy Security Fund in 2023 and expects to reach final close this year.
"We're a very long way down the track," Pienaar says. It previously raised funds targeting cybersecurity and space startups.
Zoom in: The firm expects to back 10–15 startups through the new fund, chiefly leading growth-equity rounds with investments of $25 million–$70 million.
"Critical minerals, the fuel cycle, reactor models," Pienaar says. "We are looking for profitable businesses."
The fund will regularly co-invest with two additional funds, the second made up of generalist investors seeking exposure to more nascent markets.
State of play: It's made one investment so far: a Series C2 by X-energy, a reactor developer based in Rockville, Maryland, Pienaar tells Axios.
The firm expects to close up to four more investments in nuclear supply chain companies this quarter.
The first advanced reactors are expected to begin commercial operation in 2027, with many more slated for the 2030s.
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