By Business India Editorial

Harsha Moily, son of senior Congressman M Veerappa Moily, is preparing to start a $200 million ClimateTech VC Fund, claiming that his primary goal is to find answers to climate change. He noted that as a US-educated and trained management specialist in his 40s, politics is now a closed chapter for him. 

Speaking to Network18, he said: “I am from a political family, and felt a sense of obligation to the people to whom we are so indebted to. So I tried my hand at politics, but after a few years, I realised that I am not meant for it, even though I still believe it’s the highest calling.” Moily continued: “Having over 25 years of experience in the business world, of which 12 years in the USA and UK, and 10 years as an entrepreneur, I feel I am better equipped to tackle the toughest problems in the role of a venture capitalist. So the next 20 years will be focused on climate change and I hope to live long enough to see that I have made a quantifiable impact on climate change." 

Moily stated that his ClimateTech VC fund will concentrate on four sectors: green buildings, energy storage, sustainable agriculture, and alternative energy such as green hydrogen and nuclear power. Apart from this, his venture capital fund will support entrepreneurs in India and Israel who are capable of developing products and services that reduce carbon dioxide and methane emissions, while achieving scale.

Harsha intends to travel to the US to complete his fund raising efforts. "Climate change will affect every aspect of our lives, and it is, in my opinion, the final frontier of venture capital. If we don't act now, future generations will pay a high price,” Harsha said. 

“We can't say that God will take care of everything. It reminds me of a story about former US President Abraham Lincoln, who was told by an aide that "God is on our side," to which Abe Lincoln replied: "Let us hope WE are on God's side."

According to the IFC, climate technology will be a $3.1 trillion opportunity in India by 2030. It will invest in Indian and Israeli entrepreneurs who are focused on large markets and scalable solutions. The proposed fund, however, will not invest in solar, wind, and hydro energy firms because Moily believes that far too much fossil fuel is built into the supply chain of these businesses, and its materials will end up in landfills once they are no longer used. 

Earlier in 2009, Harsha launched Milk Route, an innovative milk dairy project in Karnataka that procured over 1.25 lakh litres of milk per day from 15,000 farmers. He left the company in 2015. In addition, in 2011, he launched a digital media venture.