Energy start-ups

In 2013, ČEZ established a venture capital fund called Inven Capital, to invest in the European new energy sector. Besides the mother company, the fund is also backed by the European Investment Bank (EIB), having EUR 240m at its disposal.

EIB Vice-President Vazil Hudák commented: “I am glad that this unique EUR 100m joint co-investment initiative benefitting from the EFSI guarantee will enable Inven Capital to accelerate its equity investments. This will help to strengthen the capital base and growth of leading highly innovative European clean energy and smart-tech businesses.”

Inven Capital seeks investments into innovative cleantech/smart energy growth stage startups. They are interested in areas such as energy efficiency, distributed generation, flexibility and storage, energy, IoT and clean transportation. They target late-stage growth opportunities with business model proven by sales and with significant growth potential, focusing on creating long term value through an active support of the companies and their founders.

Last time, in March 2025 CEZ Group’s investment fund Inven Capital expanded its investment portfolio to include the Scottish start-up Ember, which operates 24 regular electric buses manufactured by Yutong.

More information about the fund can be found at www.invencapital.cz.