Published as an article in the Globe and Mail, National Bank’s Michael Denham, head of commercial and private banking, and Sophie McCormack, managing director in the Private Capital Solutions practice of the Investment Banking division, attribute the “valley of death” as a gap between early-stage venture capital and larger-scale growth equity.
This challenge is particularly acute for companies developing “hard tech,” which requires extensive research, testing, and refinement before becoming commercially viable.
Many companies are at a stage where they’ve outgrown the capacity of traditional venture capital but are still too early for infrastructure capital, creating a funding bottleneck. Denham emphasizes that Canada’s goal should be to maintain its position as a global leader in clean technology, and helping companies cross the valley of death is essential for that.
Eavor has been successfully navigating through this challenging phase, with National Bank assisting the company in raising substantial funds for its Series B round.
Described as a “great Canadian success story,” McCormack notes the company’s ability to identify market opportunities and innovate instrumental technologies to tap into that market. In doing this, Eavor ensures that scalable geothermal technology can stand out and thrive in a competitive global market.