Twelve

Twelve is a Berkeley, California carbon transformation company that uses electrochemistry to turn carbon dioxide, water and renewable electricity into fuels and chemicals that are usually made from fossil feedstocks. Its main product is E-Jet, a power-to-liquid sustainable aviation fuel, and it also makes E-Naphtha for chemicals and consumer products. The company began in 2014 as Obtainium, later operated as Opus 12, and was formally founded in 2015 by Kendra Kuhl, Etosha Cave and Nicholas Flanders, who is chief executive. It was part of the first Cyclotron Road cohort at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and also drew on federal SBIR grants.

In July 2021 Twelve raised a $57 million Series A led by Capricorn's Technology Impact Fund and Carbon Direct Capital Management. In June 2022 DCVC led a $130 million Series B with participation from Capricorn, Carbon Direct, Breakout Ventures, Munich Re Ventures, Elementum Ventures, Microsoft's Climate Innovation Fund and the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. On September 19, 2024 the company announced $645 million in funding: up to $400 million of project equity from TPG Rise Climate, about $200 million of Series C equity led by TPG with Capricorn Investment Group and Pulse Fund, and $45 million of credit facilities. Fifth Wall, northstar.vc, Toppan Global Venture Partners and Alaska Star Ventures joined the Series C as new investors, and DCVC, Munich Re Ventures, Emerson Collective, Carbon Direct and Elementum invested again. In March 2025 Twelve added $85 million in further Series C and project funding from investors including Amazon's Climate Pledge Fund, Mitsui, Development Bank of Japan and Greycroft, and United Airlines Ventures' Sustainable Flight Fund also invested.

On June 10, 2026 Twelve opened AirPlant One in Moses Lake, Washington, which it describes as the first commercial-scale U.S. plant producing power-to-liquid jet fuel, with Alaska Airlines and Microsoft at the ribbon cutting. The plant runs on Columbia River hydropower and produces on-spec fuel that Alaska Airlines plans to use on domestic flights. In September 2026 the company closed a credit facility of up to $45 million led by Endurance Capital and Nomura to refinance the construction loan and fund expansion at the site. Twelve has not disclosed a valuation.

Twelve shows how climate hardware companies finance growth with a mix of venture equity and project capital. Seed and Series A investors entered while the technology was a laboratory process; later rounds paired venture equity with infrastructure equity from TPG Rise Climate and debt from energy lenders, so the first commercial plant was funded mostly outside the company's own equity. The company remains private and has no announced exit.