Puxijing, a Vertex Ventures China- and HongShan-backed Chinese producer of new materials for semiconductor manufacturing and pharmaceutical processing, has raised nearly 500 million yuan ($69.7 million) in a Series B+ round of financing.
Several Chinese state-owned firms invested in the extension round, including Zhejiang Provincial Energy Group and an auto industry-focused fund led by Yangtze River Industry Group, as well as two government-guided technology innovation funds from the Chinese cities of Zhoushan and Chongqing, according to a statement by Puxijing.
Private market investment firms, such as Shanghai-based Real Power Capital, also participated in the deal.
Puxijing, founded in late 2021, plans to use the bulk of the Series B+ financing to wrap up the construction of its Phase I production line in Shanghai. As it prepares to put the new facilities into production as early as this year, the company will also invest in the expansion of its team and the exploration of new market opportunities.
The Shanghai production facilities will allow the company to manufacture ultra-high purity and high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) – a specialised thermoplastic known for its exceptional properties, including high strength, toughness, and chemical resistance – making it suitable for applications in new energy batteries, medical implants, semiconductors, and artificial joints of humanoid robots.
At its full capacity, the facilities will have an annual production scale of up to 280,000 tonnes (280 million kg).
With an estimated total investment of 2.25 billion yuan ($313.7 million), Puxijing started building Phase I of the Shanghai production facilities in April 2024 to target half of the planned annual production scale. It aimed to put the Phase I into operation in the third quarter of this year, according to the state-owned Shanghai Securities News.
Puxijing’s founder and CEO Zhang Wenlong said in a statement, “The company will focus on the key materials essential to China’s energy revolution to help ensure the stable supply of semiconductor-, medical-, and food-grade special materials.”
The Series B+ round came just five months after Puxijing closed the main tranche of its Series B round at “a few hundred-million Chinese yuan.” Guoke Dongfang (Shanghai) Private Equity Fund led the January deal, with participation from investors like HongShan, New Alliance Capital, and the state-owned Shanghai Alliance Investment.
Vertex Ventures China was the lead investor in Puxijing’s Series A1 round.
