Qnetic raises $5M to start up U.S. manufacturing for flywheel energy storage systems
Renewable energy startup company Qnetic has closed a $5 million funding round to help expand U.S. production of its long-duration fly-wheel energy storage systems. The company recently established a manufacturing center in Sacramento, California, and plans use the newly raised capital to fit out the facility for low-volume production of the Q500.
Flywheel energy storage systems (FESS) store electricity as rotational kinetic energy by spinning a rotor at high speeds, using a motor-generator to add or extract energy. The Qnetic Q500 system has a distinctive cylindrical design compared to the boxy shape of more traditional Lithium-ion battery energy storage systems (BESS).
The recently closed funding round was Qnetic’s largest capital raise to date. Combined with last year’s $2.1 million equity crowdfunding campaign, the company has raised $7.1 million in the past 12 months.
In addition to expanding production of the Q500, Qnetic plans to use the capital to support utility and commercial pilot projects in the United States and internationally. The company also plans to expand field testing and validation work with partners, including the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) and the National Lab of the Rockies (formerly NREL), over the next 18 to 24 months.
“We are very pleased to receive this significant amount of new funding, following an enthusiastic response to our earlier public offering,” says Michael Pratt, Qnetic cofounder and CEO. “It’s clear that the market is ready for a truly innovative energy storage solution, one that’s made in the U.S. of metals, magnets and carbon fiber, with no mineral or supply chain bottlenecks. We look forward to ramping up development and production and fielding our first systems this year.”
Mechanical vs. Li-ion
Qnetic claims that its solid-state mechanical batteries deliver decades of life, unlimited daily cycling and no thermal-runaway risk, offering a safer, lower total lifetime cost alternative to lithium-ion for long-duration, high-cycling applications.
Qnetic’s flywheel energy storage systems boast the following attributes compared to electrochemical alternatives:
- 30-year operating life with no degradation.
- Unlimited daily charge-discharge cycling with fast response time.
- High performance under extreme temperatures.
- Zero risk of thermal runaway.
- Approximately half the levelized cost of storage of lithium-ion batteries.
Qnetic recently signed agreements with the EPRI and the National Lab of the Rockies to formally assess and validate the company’s flywheel technology across a wide range of use cases.
