City of Sydney contributes $29M of support to Greenhouse to open Australia's largest dedicated climate tech hub in July

SYDNEY, March 16, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Australia's most ambitious climate action ecosystem, Greenhouse has been granted $29million from the City of Sydney to support the opening of the Greenhouse Climate Tech Hub across three floors of the iconic new Salesforce Tower in Circular Quay, Sydney.

Applications for membership to the Greenhouse Climate Tech Hub (which will open its doors in July) are now open to anyone aspiring to accelerate the transition to a zero carbon world by building and scaling climate tech solutions, with over 50 climate tech companies already expressing interest.

The City of Sydney's $29 million total contribution comprises $7 million towards the fit out of the Hub, and a total $22 million in negotiated rent abatement over 10 years to 2033.

By 2033, Greenhouse aims to have contributed to 10 percent of Australia's total emissions reduction targets, through its work with climate technology companies and corporates. Achieving this would remove at least 22 million megatonnes of greenhouse gas emissions per annum in the process.

The Tech Hub is designed to be an epicentre of climate action in the heart of Sydney capable of supporting up to 500 'ecopreneurs' across three floors of the Salesforce building, offering state-of-the-art facilities such as event and collaboration spaces, private office suites, meeting rooms, dedicated desks, and a recording studio. 

It will also deliver programs and foster connection, collaboration, and co-innovation between startups, investors, government agencies, climate action groups, researchers, and climate-aligned corporations. 

This includes housing a number of VCs and angel investors investing in climate, such as Taronga Ventures and the Investible Climate Tech Fund.

The Hub will be operated by Australian flexible workspace provider CreativeCubes, a leader in creating engaging spaces. This means residents will also be able to enjoy visitor access to five other CreativeCubes coworking locations across Australia as part of their membership to the Tech Hub. 

The Salesforce building is located in what will be one of the most desirable locations for businesses in Australia, featuring the first new public plaza on George Street in more than 50 years and the City of Sydney's first public cycling facility.

Importantly, the Salesforce building is also one of the greenest buildings in Australia, with a 5.5 star NABERS Energy rating, a Green Building Council of Australia 6-Star Green Design and As-Built rating, and WELL core and shell Platinum pre-certification.

This means companies located in this building can begin their decarbonisation journey from the get-go. 

The $29 million "accommodation grant" is part of the City of Sydney's Tech Startups Action Plan, which aims to address the needs of tech startups and create the infrastructure and ecosystems needed to foster knowledge and innovation according to City of Sydney Lord Mayor, Clover Moore.

Clover Moore, Lord Mayor of the City of Sydney, said: "The innovation space in Salesforce Tower will be a hub for climate tech startups and scaleups – a cost-effective office space that will enable emerging companies to prosper and expand into global markets.

"Sydney has a global reputation for innovation and entrepreneurship and has the highest concentration of startups in Australia.

"Businesses joining the tech hub will not only have the opportunity to accelerate their growth, they will be part of an industry that is set to play a critical role in the continued growth and economic success of wider Sydney and our national economy."

Mark Rowland, Chief Collaboration Officer of Greenhouse, said: "Climate change is the largest global challenge of our time. We must accelerate the adoption of technologies that transition us to a zero carbon world if we are to have any chance of minimising environmental destruction.

"Initiatives that help climate tech startups flourish and scale can be far more effective and impactful when launched and grown within an ecosystem of supporters, customers, and investors, all in close proximity.

"That is why we are excited to launch the Greenhouse Climate Tech Hub and foster entrepreneurship, collaboration, and co-innovation in a dedicated ecosystem, with the incredible support of the City of Sydney. 

"In this focussed and collaborative environment, we can turbocharge the solutions capable of amplified, meaningful, and lasting impact. This might explain why we've already received significant interest in the Climate Tech Hub from dozens of climate tech companies, climate action groups, and climate tech investors."

To register to become a resident of the Climate Tech Hub: https://greenhouse.tech/techhub/

Greenhouse (greenhouse.tech) is a climate action ecosystem that connects climate tech innovators to investors, corporate partners, academic experts, government agencies, and other organisations to solve the world's largest global challenge of our time: climate change. The Greenhouse ecosystem of organisations, climate tech, climate tech supporters, and communities is growing fast. There are many different ways to participate, including reserving space in our co-working Tech Hub, becoming an Ecosystem Partner, and attending climate-action-relevant events.