A daily newsletter summarizing recent activity & interesting startups in the energy storage sector globally
RECENT NOTABLE ACTIVITY – ENERGY STORAGE
- Yaskawa Electric Corporation has completed a strategic investment in grid and utility scale kinetic energy storage company Teraloop Link
- Engie, an Energy Utility acquires EV charging station developer, EV-box Link
- Aquion Energy, the saltwater battery start-up which raised $190M from Marquee investors such as Bill Gates and KPCB has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Link
- EnStorage, developer of hydrogen bromine flow batteries, raises funding from 83North Link
- ChargePoint raises $82M led by Daimler to support the expansion of the company’s charging network into Europe Link
- Dukosi, a specialist in battery management systems, has secured $2.45M funding, led by IP Group Link
- University of Cambridge receives a $12.3M of research funding from the EPSRC for improving energy storage, reducing power consumption and developing new energy-efficient devices Link
- Maxwell Technologies to acquire Nesscap Energy, developer and manufacturer of capacitive energy storage and power delivery solutions Link
- Nel acquires hydrogen generating units maker Proton OnSite in a $70M deal Link
SOME INTERESTING STARTUPS FOUND
Bioo (Barcelona, 2015) – Bioo has developed a micro scale fuel cell which obtains energy from the decomposition of carbon based organic substances by bacteria present in roots of plants. The company claims that the electrons are directly obtained from the roots, without harming the plant, which creates a current with the electrodes in the system. Water is obtained as a byproduct during the chemical reaction along with electricity at 5.0v, 1.0A.
LEADER BOARD – ENERGY STORAGE
Batteries
Energizer (1896, St.Louis, IPO) – Energizer is the oldest battery manufacturer in the world. The company has launched multiple product lines, one of them being the Inductive Charger to the world’s first AA battery made with 4% recycled batteries. The different types of battery manufactured are AAA,AA,D,9V, Photo batteries, Hearing Aid batteries etc. Two major brands are Energizer and Eveready. Went public in June, 2015.
Boston Power (2005, Westborough, $638M) – Boston-Power develops and manufactures batteries which charges faster, lasts longer, performs better and is safer than what’s currently on the market. The technology can be used in electronic devices like laptops, PDAs and mobile phones. Backed by GSR Ventures, Oak Investment Partners, Foundations Asset Management, Venrock, GGV Capital and Gabriel Venture Partners.
Energy Storage Systems
BYD (1996, Shenzhen, IPO) – BYD is a tech enterprise in China specializing in IT, automobile, and new energy. They are the largest supplier of rechargeable batteries in the globe, and has the largest market share for Nickel-cadmium batteries, handset Li-ion batteries, cell-phone chargers and keypads worldwide. Went public in August, 2002.
Alevo (2009, Martigny-Ville, $1.7B) – Alevo provides energy storage systems for grid scale storage. The “GridBank” is comprised of Lithium Ion cells which have 50000 recharge cycles. These cells are combined together to create large battery banks which can be positioned anywhere across the grid. Backed by SA Framtak.
Fuel Cell
Ballard Power Systems (1979, Burnaby, IPO) – Ballard Power Systems designs, develops and manufactures hydrogen fuel cell products for residential co-generation, back-up power, and heavy duty applications. The company operates in three segments Power Generation, Automotive, and Material Products. Went public in November, 1995.
Bloom Energy (2001, Sunnyvale, $1.2B) – Bloom Energy builds solid oxide fuel cell technology to convert natural gas into electricity. The company offers distributed generation, energy server service (each Bloom Energy server provides 200kW of power) and energy server architecture. Backed by KPCB, NEA, Goldman Sachs among others.
Component Developer
Manz (1987, Reutlingen, IPO) – Manz is a leading provider of production equipment for lithium-ion battery cells, battery systems, super-capacitors and capacitors. The products manufactured by the company are production solutions for lithium-ion batteries and capacitors in e-mobility and stationary energy storage Went public in September, 2006.
Nexeon (2006, Abingdon, $167M) – Nexeon is a battery materials and licensing company with a unique silicon anode technology. Their technology unlocks the potential of silicon to deliver increased capacity without compromising lithium-ion battery cycle life, and provides lighter batteries with more power and longer lifetime between charges. Backed by Imperial Innovations and Invesco Perpetual.
Charging Solutions
CyberPower Systems (1997, Shakopee, IPO) – CyberPower Systems designs and manufactures uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems, power distribution units (PDUs), surge protectors, mobile charging devices, connectivity devices and Fiber-to-the-Premise (FTTx) backup power solutions. Went public in January, 2010.
Gogoro (2011, Taipei, $180M) – Gogoro develops and sells electric scooters and battery swapping infrastructure. Its main product is Gogoro Smartscooter – an electric scooter designed for urban transportation. In addition to this, Gogoro has also designed a battery swapping infrastructure – Gogoro Energy Network. Backed by National Development Fund of Taiwan and Panasonic Corporation.
Battery Management
Younicos (2006, Berlin, $50M) – Younicos offers battery parks which are 3,000 times faster than conventional power plants enabling them to balance fluctuations in the grid much more precisely and efficiently. The company offers hybrid batteries and battery technology which make batteries intelligent and efficient. They provide micro grid system in remote areas with renewable energy supply and storage technology. Backed by First Solar and Grupoecos.
Leaderboard includes all the top funded, IPO and successfully running bootstrapped companies along with their location, founding year and funding amount.
For latest updates visit Energy Storage feed.