California-based energy storage technology developer Gridtential announced that it has closed US$11 million in financing led by 1955 Capital, with assistance from East Penn Manufacturing, Crown Battery Manufacturing, Leoch International and Power-Sonic Inc., as well as an existing investor in The Roda Group.
With the rechargeable battery sector expected to surpass US$100 billion by 2025, Gridtential will use this new funding to grow growing global demand for advanced energy storage in the automotive, backup power, grid solutions, and mobility industries.
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Due to this financing, Andrew Chung, 1955 Capital founder and managing partner, will now join Gridtential's board of directors.
Chung noted: “Gridtential’s breakthrough approach to energy storage addresses the booming demand for vehicle electrification and grid-scale storage in China and other emerging markets, which fits our investment model here at 1955.
“Gridtential could achieve exceptional, market leading cost and performance with a capital-efficient commercialization path by effectively leveraging existing manufacturing infrastructure and a well-established materials supply chain. It is rare to see so many leading battery producers cooperatively invest in a single company, which underscores the tremendous potential the industry sees in the Gridtential's Silicon Joule battery technology in the U.S., China, and beyond.”
Recently, Gridtential has developed a new battery architecture — Silicon Joule Technology — that the company claims mixes the benefits of lead-acid batteries (low costs, safety, recyclability) with the benefits of lithium-ion batteries (fast charging/discharging, high depth of discharge, and long cycle life).
Ray Kubis, Gridtential chairman, said: “We've made excellent progress with our licensing partners, and are in a strong position to accelerate Silicon Joule commercialization efforts to enable them to meet the mounting industry demand for 48V systems in addition to other diverse industrial applications, including back-up power and grid storage.
“It is also encouraging to see European automakers accelerate their push to 48V hybrid solutions in a concerted effort to improve fuel economy and reduce emissions in contrast to the previous focus on conventional diesel-based powertrains.”