Energy Storage in Focus in US as Multiple Firms Secure Support

Major US Firms Announces Financing & Investments for Solar Projects, Energy Storage

The US is witnessing a boom in solar manufacturing and energy storage projects with the announcement of the Inflation Reduction Act. The past week was also marked by news on key energy storage projects.

Project Financing

Among these, a major news coming in was of Nevada-based American Battery Technology Co., a battery materials firm, that commercialized its primary minerals manufacturing as well as secondary minerals lithium-ion battery (LIB) recycling technologies. The firm welcome a contract award worth $57 million from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Under the multiyear project, ABCT will be responsible for the designing, construction and operation of a lithium hydroxide manufacturing facility in Tonopah, Nevada at commercial-scale.

The project is a significant one for it will give an impetus to the domestic critical mineral lithium hydroxide industry. The firm maintains that the Tonopah Flats Lithium Project is among the largest known lithium resources in the U.S., boasting about 15.8 million tons of economically accessible lithium on a carbonate equivalent basis.

In another crucial announcement, Westborough, Massachusetts-based Ascend Elements, a lithium-ion battery (LIB) recycling firm, raised $542 million by way of new equity investments. This encompasses $460 million in Series D investments and $82 million of additional investments earlier in the year. The Series D round was led by Decarbonization Partners, Temasek and Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) among others. As per the firm, $542 million worth of equity financing is among the largest cleantech equity private placements in the U.S.

With the funding, Ascend will take forward the construction of its Apex 1 unit in Kentucky. The manufacturing facility will delve into sustainable cathode precursor (pCAM) and cathode active material (CAM).

Mike O’Kronley, CEO, Ascend Elements, said, “Together, we are investing in North America’s critical EV battery infrastructure and bringing good manufacturing jobs back to the United States.”

Presently, China is a leader in the manufacture of cathode precursor (pCAM) and cathode active material (CAM) and this underlines the importance of the initiative that will make a noteworthy contribution to the supply chain to make electric vehicle batteries cleaner and more sustainable.

Further, the firm says that its patented Hydro-to-Cathode direct precursor synthesis process removes the need of other intermediary steps in the process of traditional cathode manufacturing. This has a favourable impact on the economics and carbon-reduction. Ascend adds that some studies have shown that the firm’s recycled battery materials curb carbon emissions by up to 93 percent.

Solar Financing Initiatives

On the solar financing front, solar real investment fund SolaREIT and AB CarVal, have concluded an investment to the tune of $250 million towards the turbocharging the growth of SolaREIT’s renewable land, lease and loan financing solutions. The initiative will give a massive push to solar and the development of battery storage. The partnership will play a crucial in solar financing and addressing the challenges that often come with it.  “Solar development is capital intensive, and we believe this investment will deliver innovative technologies and projects that are supporting the energy transition while offering solid, long-term return potential,” said Jerry Keefe, principal with AB CarVal.

Last year, SolaREIT closed on a $100 million securitization of solar leases with Nuveen.

The developments in the pipeline are sure to aid the domestic solar and EV industry by augmenting new, more efficient technologies, enhancing the supply chain, while also making solar financing more accessible and easier, to further advance the manufacturing industry.