Summa Equity announced the sale of leading PropTech Kiona to CAREL

Stockholm, July 24th 2023: Summa Equity (“Summa”), a purpose-driven thematic investment firm, today announces the sale of Kiona, a leading energy efficiency software platform, to global energy efficiency components and solutions provider CAREL.

Buildings account for c.40% of the world's energy consumption and c.35% of greenhouse gases. Kiona’s goal is to reduce unnecessary energy usage and CO2e emissions generated by and for buildings. They have developed easy-to-use and fast to deploy technology that allows users to monitor, control and optimise their energy consumption. Through its use across Europe, in 2022 Kiona technology saved users 215m kWh (equivalent to the power needed to heat over 17,900 average homes for an entire year).

Kiona is market-leading in its core segment and has an unparalleled contractor network in Scandinavia - with 200 partners in Norway and Sweden alone - as well as partnerships in eight countries and a team of ca. 145 people working across Europe (located in Denmark, Finland, Germany, Norway, Poland, Sweden, and Switzerland).

Kiona solutions make it possible for users to reduce energy usage and greenhouse gas emissions from both residential and commercial buildings; reduce food loss with temperature monitoring, documentation, and alarm screening of refrigeration systems; as well as optimise utility consumption and reduce emissions.

In 2022 Kiona benefited from recent mergers as the company delivered strong double-digit growth through sales of its full suite of products (Energy Management Software, Supervisory Control, and Data Acquisition) and the self-learning AI engine Edge.

“Over 58,000 buildings across Europe use Kiona technology and in 2022, 24,000 tons of CO2e was averted as a direct consequence. Operating at this scale means that Kiona is generating considerable impact and climate action for customers. I am excited to closely follow Kiona as they embark on their next chapter with CAREL, who I know to be deeply committed to Kiona’s long-term health and success,” said Gisle Glück Evensen, Director in Kiona and Partner, Summa Equity.

“Our customers are the most central to everything we do, and now Kiona, together with CAREL, will be able to move forward to develop our services and products to achieve market leadership. Together, new global opportunities will also arise that will lead to further growth for Kiona solutions and employees,” said Trond-Øystein Bjørnnes, CEO Kiona.

“Kiona and CAREL uniquely complement each other from a business perspective, but most importantly, we share a resolute alignment in our mission to reduce energy waste for all our customers. In CAREL, we have found an ideal partner for our ongoing journey of growth and sustainability,” said Kent Zehetner, Chair Kiona.

Kiona was the first investment made by Summa Equity Fund I; meeting UN Sustainable Development Goals #7 (affordable and clean energy), #11 (sustainable cities and communities), and #13 (climate action).

William Blair acted as exclusive M&A advisor to the shareholders of Kiona.

About the Kiona Group

Kiona is a leading SaaS company with the vision to significantly impact the fight against climate change by offering the most innovative and cost-efficient proptech platform on the market. With well-proven solutions for integration and connectivity, Kiona helps customers achieve their financial and sustainability objectives by digitising new and old buildings and their heating, cooling, ventilation, and refrigeration systems. For more information, visit www.kiona.com

About Summa Equity

Summa invests in companies that are solving global challenges and creating positive Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) outcomes for society. Summa’s purpose is to co-create win-win for investors, portfolio companies, and society through aligning its vision and investing in line with the UN SDGs. Summa invests across the themes of Resource Efficiency, Changing Demographics, and Tech-Enabled Transformation, and has c. EUR 4bn assets under management. For more information, visit www.summaequity.com

About the CAREL Group

CAREL is a global leader, headquartered in Padova (Italy), in the design, production and marketing of technologically advanced components and solutions for excellent energy efficiency in the control of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (“HVAC”) and refrigeration equipment and systems. CAREL is focused on several vertical niche markets with extremely specific needs, catered for with dedicated solutions developed comprehensively for these requirements, as opposed to mass markets. The Group designs, produces and markets hardware, software and algorithm solutions aimed at both improving the performance of the units and systems they are intended for and for energy saving, with a globally recognized brand in the HVAC and refrigeration markets (collectively, “HVAC-R”) in which it operates and, in the opinion of the Group’s management, with a distinctive position in the relevant niches in those markets. For more information, visit www.carel.com

For interviews or more information, please contact:

Hannah Gunvor Jacobsen, Partner, COO and Head of IR at Summa Equity

+47 936 41 960 | hannah.jacobsen@summaequity.com