Hydrostor announced on 19 September that it had closed US$37 million (C$49 million) in its latest funding round as it aims to drive forward plans to commercialise its advanced compressed air energy storage (A-CAES) technology.
The financing included a combination of equity, debt, project development and cash commitments, and an asset acquisition.
Hydrostor plans to use the financing to complete construction of its second commercial reference facility in Australia, and to advance the company’s pipeline of large-scale A-CAES projects.
The Canadian-based company has projects in Australia (Angas Project) and Ontario, Canada (Goderich A-CAES facility) totalling more than 25MWh. The firm also has projects from 500MW/5GWh in advanced development across the US, Australia, Canada, and Chile.
Renewable energy developer Elemental Energy participated in the fundraising, with additional funding from existing investors Canoe Financial, ArcTern Ventures, MaRS Catalyst Fund and Lorem Partners.
The firm has also formed strategic partnerships with asset and fund manager Meridiam and energy technology company Baker Hughes, a GE company (BHGE).
The former will support the origination and development of A-CAES projects.
Elisabeth Hivon, partner at Meridiam, has joined Hydrostor’s board of directors.
The Goderich project is expected to begin delivering grid services to the province’s grid operator, IESO, next month.
In July, BEST Battery Briefing reported how the government of South Australia had granted permission for Hydrostor’s 5MW/10MWh Angas project six months after the plans were first lodged.
Hydrostor Australia, a subsidiary of the Canadian firm, plans to construct the alternative energy storage system at the unused Angas Zinc Mine outside of Adelaide, South Australia.
