FluoRok raises €26.64m to scale HF-free fluorochemical production

FluoRok secures €26.64m for industrial expansion

Oxford-based FluoRok has secured a €26.64 million ($30 million) Series A financing package to take its alternative fluorochemical manufacturing technology towards industrial production, EU-Startups reports. The company’s patented process eliminates the use of hydrogen fluoride, a highly hazardous chemical used in conventional manufacturing.

Orano Ventures Fund/Supernova Invest led the financing, with Bidra Innovation Ventures joining the investor group. According to EU-Startups, returning shareholders included Oxford Science Enterprises, BGF, GGF, Volta Energy Technologies and the University of Oxford.

FluoRok said the fundraising surpassed its target. EU-Startups also named EverQuest Capital Partners, CPI Enterprises and WS Investment among the smaller participants, alongside several angel investors. The announced package includes approximately €1.15 million ($1.3 million) in Innovate UK grants through its Investor Partnerships programme.

The financing follows €12.43 million ($14 million) raised in earlier rounds, EU-Startups reports. Separately, the outlet puts FluoRok’s cumulative UK and European public funding at more than €11.54 million ($13 million), giving the business a funding history that combines private investment with public support.

An Oxford spin-out tackles fluorochemical supply risks

Founded in 2022 as a University of Oxford spin-out, FluoRok is targeting manufacturers in pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals and lithium-ion batteries. EU-Startups identifies these as markets that depend on fluorochemicals but face concentrated supply and significant production hazards.

The established manufacturing route dates back roughly 250 years and requires high-purity fluorspar, predominantly supplied from China, according to EU-Startups. That dependence exposes producers to raw-material sourcing and cost risks alongside the safety challenges of handling hydrogen fluoride.

FluoRok’s alternative combines mechanical activation with base chemistry to extract fluorine from lower-grade minerals and industrial waste containing fluoride. EU-Startups reports that the process operates under controllable conditions, broadening the range of materials that can serve as feedstock rather than relying on the conventional high-purity input.

The platform uses standard industrial equipment, according to the report. That offers a practical advantage for expansion: FluoRok can build around machinery already available to industry rather than requiring an entirely bespoke equipment supply chain.

The company says it has completed pilot qualifications and that more than ten partners are validating its products across eight countries on three continents. Those figures, reported by EU-Startups, show the international reach of its testing activity; they are not disclosed sales or revenue figures.

Investors point to pilot progress and supply resilience

Florian de Beauchaine, investment manager at Orano Venture Fund/Supernova Invest, linked the investment to the fund’s interest in industrial technologies that strengthen supply autonomy and sustainability. In comments reported by EU-Startups, he cited FluoRok’s pilot-scale performance as a basis for backing the business at its next stage.

De Beauchaine also argued that removing hydrogen fluoride addresses a problem shared across the fluorochemical industry, rather than a narrow application for an individual customer. His assessment positions the technology as a potential response to both manufacturing safety and supply constraints, according to EU-Startups.

Founder and chief executive Dr Gabriele Pupo presented improved economics as an ambition alongside safer chemistry. EU-Startups reported that Pupo attributed investor support to the technology, customer engagement and the team’s execution, although the supplied material gives no quantified comparison of production costs.

Demonstrator facilities and battery products come next

FluoRok plans to spend the new capital on demonstrator facilities for its reagents and battery electrolyte salts, EU-Startups reports. Recruitment and closer commercial partnerships are also priorities as the company works towards becoming an industrial-scale manufacturer. The supplied reporting does not specify facility locations, capacity or commissioning dates.

The product roadmap includes scaling the platform for LiFSI and FEC, which EU-Startups identifies as next-generation battery products. This gives the expansion a defined battery-sector focus alongside the company’s wider pharmaceutical and agrochemical markets.

FluoRok also intends to develop a waste-to-value operation that converts fluorinated polymer waste into high-value chemical intermediates. More than 25,000 tonnes of this waste is incinerated annually in Europe alone, according to EU-Startups, providing a potential feedstock opportunity for the platform.

For manufacturers entering or expanding in the UK and Europe, the commercial question is whether that broader feedstock base can become a dependable source of qualified chemical inputs at industrial volumes. Pilot progress and partner testing are established milestones; delivery schedules, output capacity and customer pricing remain undisclosed in the supplied reporting.