Onboarding leading climate protection service provider First Climate
First Climate AG acquires stake in the company and invests in the millions
Austrian software and consulting start-up VIRIDAD onboards leading climate protection service provider First Climate AG and secures fresh capital in the millions for the future development of its digital platform solution in the EU Taxonomy. With the investment, First Climate AG, based in Frankfurt and Zurich, acquires 25.1% of the shares in VIRIDAD.
"The investment and the partnership with First Climate give us the capacity to take the next important step and to create long-term value for our clients in the implementation of their climate and sustainability strategies, together with our partner" stated Dr. Klemens Marx, CEO and co-founder of VIRIDAD. "By building on our existing platform, we will now develop our digital solutions further and grow in the market," says Marx. The EU Taxonomy establishes a classification system for sustainable business conduct and is a milestone aiming to facilitate green investment.
For First Climate, the investment in VIRIDAD is another important building block in its development towards becoming a fully integrated climate protection service provider for the private and public sectors. The company already offers solutions in the areas of carbon management and renewable energy supply. Through the partnership with VIRIDAD, First Climate is broadening the scope of the services offered by its inhouse consulting team with a valuable additional component.
"Our goal is to make First Climate the central point of contact for all aspects of corporate climate protection, and to accompany our clients with innovative solutions at all stages of their individual climate journey," says First Climate CEO, Olaf Bachert. "We are therefore very pleased to be able to support our partners through this cooperation with VIRIDAD in the future, as well as to support them in responding to the challenges of implementing the EU Taxonomy, which already affects many companies within the EU, and will further increase its impact in the near future."
Digital solutions for efficient implementation of EU Taxonomy requirements
As part of VIRIDAD's software-as-a-service model, customers can utilize the online platform to analyze their business activities for eligibility for and alignment with the EU Taxonomy. They can perform sustainability assessments and make use of digital solutions for the preparation of non-financial reporting. For more complex tasks requiring specialized consultation, the platform, which was developed in cooperation with the research institute, the AIT Austrian Institute of Technology, also includes access to an extensive pool of experienced experts who can be commissioned via VIRIDAD to work on individual tasks.
Cooperation delivers win-win situation in growth market
“For businesses, the foremost challenge of the EU Taxonomy is managing the immense complexity of the rules and meeting the extensive reporting obligations. Beyond this, many of the affected businesses are still not truly aware of the looming pressure to take action. As a result, they are running out of time to actively prepare for the EU Taxonomy requirements," explains Klemens Marx. In many cases, this can then only be remedied with the help of expensive consulting services from specialized experts. This is where VIRIDAD's software solution comes in, supporting companies in implementing the mandatory requirements of the Taxonomy and saving time and money by enabling the efficient handling of all relevant processes.
EU Taxonomy urges companies to take action
As a European regulatory framework, the EU Taxonomy sets criteria for assessing the sustainability of economic activities. The aim is to create transparency and standards of comparison so that investments and capital streams can be aligned more closely with environmental considerations. The EU Taxonomy will also gradually impose a reporting obligation on companies and capital market participants. Currently, this already applies to large publicly listed companies and financial service providers. By 2026 and with the introduction of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), however, the obligation to report on sustainability in accordance with the EU Taxonomy will be extended to a large number of additional companies and will eventually affect all businesses in the European Union.
About VIRIDAD
VIRIDAD simplifies the EU Taxonomy, making it understandable and accelerating its implementation with a digital platform using standardized processes and intuitive interfaces. The platform spans all relevant application fields of the EU Taxonomy and also offers a pool of technical experts covering all relevant areas. VIRIDAD is headquartered in Vienna, and its employees and partners are united by the mission to advance the sustainable transformation of the economic system by means of innovative solutions and services. https://www.viridad.eu
About First Climate
First Climate is a leading global provider of carbon management and green energy services for corporate and public sector clients. They develop, finance, and source verified emission reduction projects around the globe, thus enabling clients to support local sustainable development and climate change mitigation activities on the ground.
With access to a broad network of global partners, as well as expertise in operational green energy procurement, First Climate is also a major provider of renewable energy solutions and offers procurement options to assist companies in reducing their energy-related carbon footprint. https://www.firstclimate.com
