The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank at the end of last week rocked the American startup landscape, and climate tech was no exception.

SVB counted more than 1,500 climate and sustainability companies among its clients, and was known as the financial home for small climate tech startups often passed over by major financial institutions. Now those same institutions are harvesting what’s left of the erstwhile climate tech funder, injecting uncertainty into the short-term viability of some renewable projects.

As Tom Steyer puts it, the first thing most lenders look at when assessing the risk of a loan to a company are the assets it owns and its cash flow. Many startups have neither, making them a quick “no” for most banks. That presented an opportunity for SVB, which made a name for itself by working with startups to get financing at uncertain stages in their development.

With that avenue now gone, it’s unclear who, if anyone, will fill the gap.

One concern is that climate tech financing could suddenly be subjected to more red tape from new lenders, potentially driving up the cost of capital for a credit line. More generally, the worry is that a banking crisis could quash high-impact innovation at a critical point in the climate crisis.

The good news is that while the bank may have run short of funds, few of its loans to the clean-energy industry are at risk of default, which may help make the SVB episode a bump in the road rather than an extinction event.

For the time being, most investors appear confident that climate tech will prove more resilient than it appears. Robust subsidies from the Inflation Reduction Act and European Green Deal are expected to go a long way toward weathering any wider economic fallout stemming from SVB’s collapse.

Canada Banking Rules

Amidst the chaos in the US, the Canadian government announced rules that will bring its banks in line with climate goals.

The Canadian Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) has released new guidelines requiring federally regulated financial institutions in Canada to develop and implement a climate transition plan over the next two years.

The new rules compel Canadian banks to institute measures that climate finance advocates have been promoting for years. They are designed to hold financial institutions and their management officials accountable for managing climate-related risks.

First, banks will have to account for and disclose the greenhouse gas emissions tied to companies in their loan, bond and mortgage portfolios.

That’s especially important considering Canada's outsized impact on funding fossil fuels. A report from last year found that eight of Canada’s largest banks financed more than double the country’s entire carbon footprint.

Canadian banks have shown an appetite for oil sands projects in particular, with 5 of the top 10 global funders of tar sands extraction coming from Canada.

The new rules also aim to manage mounting legal and physical risks from climate change, such as lawsuits against banks’ fossil fuel clients and property loss from devastating storms. This should come in handy as the impacts of climate change have already run up a considerable tab in Canada.

Last year was the third-most expensive for severe weather insurance claims in Canada, just ahead of 2021 and behind 2016 and 2013.

The move comes as regulators in other parts of the world consider more robust climate requirements for their financial institutions, with the Federal Reserve Board in the US considering rules to force major banks to weigh climate-related financial risks in their decision-making, and new rules implemented by the European Banking Authority requiring banks in the European Union to report emissions associated with the products they sell.

Canadian climate advocates have hailed the guidelines as a positive step, but some believe they do not go far enough in addressing financial institutions’ contributions to climate change.

The rules require banks to analyze risks under a 1.5 degree Celsius scenario, but still don’t force them to align with them. They also don’t do much to help consumers understand their financial risk to climate impacts. The Canadian home insurance industry has endorsed attaching a climate risk score to real estate to keep lenders and buyers on the same page about how much climate change could cost them.

🌎 New climate Jobs

Check out some of the latest featured jobs below. If you don't see anything that speaks to you, you can always go to Climatebase to explore thousands of other opportunities.

Cervest

"Cervest is building the world's first open access AI-powered Climate Intelligence platform. We’re a Certified B Corporation with a vision to build a climate intelligent world — one where everyone is able to use Climate Intelligence to adapt with climate change.  ..."

• Solutions Consultant - Climate Intelligence (Remote (ET))
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Ecolectro

"Ecolectro is unleashing the green hydrogen revolution. Using today’s technology and talent we’re bringing scalable, low-cost, we're tackling our biggest climate problem - bringing clean green hydrogen energy to the very near future! ..."

• Senior Electrochemist (Ithaca, NY, USA)

Clairity Technology

"Clairity Technology was founded to develop technology and solutions to combat climate change. We create scalable and low-cost technology and systems for direct air capture of carbon dioxide. We focus on generating low purity CO2 streams to simplify design, reduce cost, and improve scalability. As you increase the purity of CO2, the amount of energy required to further purify it goes ..."

• Electrical, Controls, & Automation Engineer (Los Angeles, CA, USA)
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Arch

"Arch is an early-stage company on a mission to create a future of sustainable heating and cooling for all. Arch builds the software that enables society to transition to a world powered by heat pumps. We are backed by top-tier investors ( Coatue, Floodgate, ReGen, MCJ), who also invested in Notion, Figma, Lyft, Tesla and Aurora Solar. The founders of Aurora ..."

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Open Supply Hub

"Open Supply Hub (OS Hub) exists to improve human rights and environmental conditions in and around factories and facilities by opening up supply chain data as a free, public good. ..."

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Pacific Institute

"The Pacific Institute creates and advances solutions to the world’s most pressing water challenges. Our vision is to create a world in which society, the economy, and the environment have the water they need to thrive now and in the future. ..."

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WilderHill Clean Energy (ECO)

"The WilderHill Clean Energy Index (ECO) tracked by $1 Billion in assets under management is the world leader in capturing and tracking climate change solutions. Live since 2004 we were the first on Wall Street for green themes, tracked by ETFs. Followed by NEX Index in 2006 which is the first for Global green innovation & climate, we now also ..."

• Associate (Remote (USA))

Clean Energy Buyers Association (CEBA)

"Our bold and ambitious aspiration: achieve a 90% carbon-free U.S. electricity system by 2030. ..."

• Manager, Clean Energy Transaction Innovation (TAG) (Remote)

City Forest Credits

"City Forest Credits (CFC) is a 501(c)(3) national nonprofit carbon registry that seeks to make American cities greener, healthier, and more equitable. We are engaged in the exciting and challenging work of registering trees in cities across the U.S. to produce urban forest carbon credits. We offer two important tools to contribute to local climate action and enrich our communities. ..."

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DEXMAT

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• Mechanical Engineer (Houston, TX, USA)

COMPASS Science Communication, Inc.

"COMPASS champions, connects, and supports diverse science leaders for the well-being of people and nature. For more than 20 years, COMPASS has been a trailblazer in the effort to bring science into public conversation. We believe that science communication and engagement are more impactful when scientists feel safe and supported to bring their whole selves to their work. We also believe ..."

• Development & Administrative Associate (Remote)

Conduit Tech

"At Conduit Tech , we’re focused on the 10% of all GHG emissions that derive from residential HVAC use. Conduit’s focused on enabling the clean energy workforce - starting with software tools for HVAC pros. Supporting contractors and homeowners through design, sales and implementation, Conduit will help mitigate grid strain, reduce home energy use and enhance home comfort. ..."

• Senior Full Stack Engineer (Remote (Boston, MA, USA))
• Senior Product Designer (Remote (Boston, MA, USA))

Foresight Management

"Foresight Management exists to champion energy management, accelerate sustainability, and increase profitability for our customers.  ..."

• Senior Developer (Remote (Grand Rapids, MI, USA))

Be First Barking & Dagenham

"We are a local authority owned, independent urban regeneration company. Our mission is to accelerate regeneration in the London Borough of Barking & Dagenham, so that no-one is left behind.  ..."

• Senior Sustainability Manager (Barking, UK)

Aurora Solar

"Aurora Solar is a fast-growing Series D company on a mission to create a future of solar energy for all. Aurora makes the software that is enabling society to transition to a world powered by solar power. It’s our goal to have every solar installation in the world pass through our software, which has already been used to design millions ..."

They are hiring across the following departments:

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Pyka

"Pyka’s goal is to provide society with a new form of fast, environmentally friendly, and accessible transportation enabled by autonomous electric aviation. To get there, we’re taking a different approach than most. We're applying our technologies to every industry where electric aircraft can be useful, starting with the highest value and most dangerous jobs. In doing so, we're building useful, game-changing ..."

They are hiring across the following departments:

• Electrical Engineering
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Scale Microgrid Solutions

"Scale Microgrid Solutions (“Scale”) is a fully integrated distributed energy platform focused on designing, implementing and financing innovative distributed clean energy solutions. ..."

• Director of Policy and Public Affairs (Remote (Ridgewood, NJ))
• Service Technician - Northern California (Remote (Oakland, CA))
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• FP&A Manager (Remote (Ridgewood, NJ))
• Business Development Manager - SoCal (Remote (Los Angeles, CA))
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• Manager, Credit Underwriting (Remote (New York, NY))
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CEG Solutions LLC

"CEG Solutions delivers turnkey, design-build projects that are paid for using the savings the projects produce. We assess, design, construct, finance, operate, maintain, and verify energy conservation measures across the full spectrum of energy-saving, water-saving renewable energy generation, and resilience technologies. In only 10 years, our projects have helped avoid 266,408 MTCO2e emissions. We are a diverse, high-performing team of over ..."

• Energy Development Associate (Remote)
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• Energy Efficiency - Quality Control Manager (Remote)
• Construction Manager (Energy Efficiency and Resilience) (Remote)
• Senior Energy Engineer (Remote (Arlington, VA, USA))

That's it for this week! Remember, you can always view thousands of more jobs on Climatebase.org.

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