Alkagesta has invested in Clean Caspian, a science-led environmental start-up developing solutions for localising and neutralising oil contamination in marine environments, Azerbaijani outlet Innews reported on 27 May 2026 in Azerbaijani and English.
The project reached the company through the GUB Startup Platform, where it featured in the "Skills for the Future" initiative, a programme through which young innovators present research-based solutions to industrial and environmental problems. Alkagesta committed support after assessing the project''s scientific merit, environmental potential and contribution to entrepreneurship among young people in the Caucasus and Central Asia.
Clean Caspian is led by Narmin Ismayilova and Aynura Mammadova, researchers from Baku Engineering University in Azerbaijan and the University of Padova in Italy. Their work targets one of the most persistent environmental risks tied to hydrocarbon production and transport in the Caspian: contamination in enclosed, ecologically sensitive water bodies.
Spills and emulsified hydrocarbon layers restrict oxygen exchange at the surface, damage marine biodiversity and affect coastal communities. The team''s approach centres on environmentally safe, economically efficient coagulants and oil-localisation materials intended to make spill response faster and more effective.
Current research covers biodegradable sorbents, nanomaterial-based oil collection agents and containment systems including boom barriers and skimmer technologies, according to Innews. The emphasis throughout is on scalable, low-cost methods that regional operators and responders can deploy without specialist infrastructure.
For Alkagesta the investment sits within its ESG strategy and a stated commitment to applied science in the region. For the Caspian, where enclosed waters magnify the consequences of any release, cheaper and faster containment materials would have direct operational value across producing and transit states alike.
