Europe imports over 30% of its nitrogen fertilizer. That supply is disappearing.

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Russian imports are being tariffed out of the market. Gulf shipping routes are disrupted. Gas prices make domestic production uncompetitive. And the EU just opened a brand new legal category for alternative nitrogen products.

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We’re a Portuguese venture studio launching a new company to solve this. We’re combining proven nutrient recovery technology with frontier plasma physics and AI-driven process control to produce nitrogen fertilizer from agricultural waste, air, and renewable electricity. No natural gas. No imports. Decentralized, modular, and designed for Iberian solar from day one.

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We have a research partnership with one of Europe’s top plasma physics labs, an EIC grant application in preparation, and a founding team with deep experience in industrial hardware, AI, and venture building.

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We’re missing the person who makes the chemistry work.

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What you’ll do

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You’ll be our first process engineer. The person who turns the science into a working system.

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Design and commission the first pilot unit for nitrogen recovery from livestock manure and biogas digestate. Select the technology configuration, size the equipment, manage suppliers, and get it running at a farm in Portugal.

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Bridge the gap between lab-scale plasma reactors and a commercially deployable system.

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Work directly with our academic partner to define how plasma enrichment integrates with the recovery process.

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Develop analytical protocols for variable feedstock (manure composition changes with animal type, diet, and season) and define the process parameters that guarantee consistent product quality. Own regulatory navigation: EU Fertilising Products Regulation, RENURE certification criteria, Portuguese and Spanish environmental permitting.

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Shape the product roadmap. This is a founding role. Your process expertise drives what we build, in what order, and why.

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What we’re looking for

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Must have:

• Degree in Chemical Engineering, Process Engineering, or Environmental Engineering (MSc or PhD preferred)
• 3+ years hands-on with at least one of: nutrient recovery from wastewater/manure, ammonia stripping/scrubbing, anaerobic digestion, biogas upgrading, or industrial gas treatment
• Experience with process design, P&IDs, mass/energy balances, and equipment specification
• Comfortable in pilot and field environments. You’ll be on farms and at processing sites, not behind a desk
• Fluent English. Portuguese or Spanish is a strong plus

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Strong plus:

• Exposure to plasma chemistry, plasma reactors, or non-thermal plasma applications
• Knowledge of EU fertilizer regulations (FPR 2019/1009, Nitrates Directive, RENURE)
• Experience with struvite precipitation, membrane separation, or electrodialysis
• Startup or early-stage background where you built systems from scratch
• Familiarity with sensor-driven process control or AI/ML optimization

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Why this role

You’ll work alongside a team that has built and scaled technology companies, deployed AI-controlled hardware in industrial manufacturing environments, and designed precision optical systems. Our research partner has won the European Physical Society’s top plasma physics prize and demonstrated nitrogen fixation in ESA-funded projects.

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The market is € 15B+ in Europe. The regulatory window just opened. The technology is ready to move from lab to farm.

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We’re looking for someone who wants to own the process side of something that matters, from the very beginning.

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How to apply

Send a short note and your CV to ricardo@laikaventures.co.

Tell us: what’s the most interesting process engineering problem you’ve solved?

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Laika Ventures is a Portuguese venture studio. We build companies from scratch in sectors where technology can create structural change. laikaventures.co

#ChemicalEngineering #ProcessEngineering #Climatetech #Startup #Hiring #Portugal #CircularEconomy #GreenTech #FoundingTeam

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