Top 50 Rising Stars 2021 continued (in alphabetical order by CVC unit): Ilya Pavlov, vice-president of investments, Severstal Ventures
Ilya Pavlov is a vice-president of investments at Severstal Ventures, Russia-based steel, energy and mining group Severstal’s strategic investment vehicle. He focuses on investment opportunities in the industrial internet-of-things, renewable energy and energy efficiency and telecommunications sectors.
George Gogolev, general manager of Severstal Ventures, said: “Ilya came in with a wealth of experience from the top Russian funds Rusnano and Bright Capital. He also had some entrepreneurial experience after completing a PhD in plasma physics at EPFL (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne).
“With us, he quickly dug into the details of our business, made the right connections in the corporation. Lately, he has been focusing on hydrogen and CO2 projects, which are critical for the future of our industry.”
Regarding the unit’s second investment in Netherlands-based composite part manufacturing automation technology developer Airborne in June 2020, six months after the first tranche, Pavlov said: “Now the whole world is impressed by the launch of Crew Dragon spacecraft from SpaceX to the ISS.
“The commercial space industry is gaining momentum, and Airborne’s breakthrough solutions will undoubtedly accelerate this race.
“Severstal has been contributing to the development of cosmonautics for many years, supplying steel with special properties for the construction and installation of critical facilities at the Vostochny cosmodrome.”
Alongside the deal, Severstal and Airborne signed an exclusive technology partnership agreement in Russia. Under the terms of the agreement, Severstal will be Airborne’s first-choice partner within Russia for the implementation of all composite projects, including the automated production of composite parts.
Pavlov has more than 15 years of diverse international experience in industrial technologies, high-tech entrepreneurship and venture capital investing, and strategy and business development. His investments have included early to medium-stage companies from Russia, the United States, Europe and Israel.
