UK energy storage startup Cheesecake Energy Ltd. (CEL) today announced an approx. €1.1 million seed investment round, led by The Imperial College Innovation Fund (ICIF). The round, which Perivoli Innovations and prominent business angels al participated in, will fund the development of CEL’s’s manufacturing capabilities and its lead ‘eTanker’ storage system.
CEL was founded in 2016 by Mike Simpson (PhD, Engineering), and is developing a green energy storage technology known as eTanker that stores electricity in the form of compressed air and heat. eTanker is deployed in a modular, containerised package, making it suitable for a range of terrains and applications in industry including local renewable microgrids, electric vehicle fleet charging and heavy industry. CEL believes its innovation will lead to 30% – 40% cost reductions for energy storage, coupled with portability and flexibility that will make it attractive for many applications.
The British company is targeting the medium-duration energy storage market, as currently technologies such as batteries are not economical, and large-scale solutions like pumped hydro systems are unsuitable. “We realised that current technologies were not feasible for key sectors like transport and commercial industries where longer discharge durations are needed and batteries become uneconomic,” said CEO Mike Simpson.
Now the startup is progressing its first pilot system with Nottinghamshire County Council, helping the Council to achieve some of the goals laid out in its carbon management plan.
ICIF invested around €351K in this round. Brijesh Roy, Seed Investment Manager at Imperial College London, said: “CEL has assembled an impressive technical and commercial team, working on a technology that could accelerate a UK Green Industrial Revolution. I’m proud that our investments continue to support deep technology businesses seeking to make a significant impact.”
Mike Simpson, Chief Executive Officer, Cheesecake Energy Limited, said: “This investment round will support CEL as we further optimise our sustainable energy storage technology, improving performance while driving down costs. We believe the benefits our technology can offer over current market-leading solutions like lithium-ion will help to accelerate decarbonisation in key sectors such as transport and heavy industry.”
Martin Glen, Investment Director at Parkwalk, said: “We have been impressed with the quantity and quality of the deal flow from Imperial, and Cheesecake is a prime example of the type of investments that ICIF I has backed. Imperial College Innovations has done a great job in selecting the opportunities for the investment committee, and given the upcoming pipeline, we are delighted to launch ICEF II.”
via https://www.AiUpNow.com
September 27, 2021 at 08:36AM by contact@bcurdy.com, Khareem Sudlow
