Peak Energy on Track to Rapidly Scale Sodium-Ion Battery Manufacturing in the U.S. to Secure Future of Renewable Energy

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Jul 17, 2024, 09:00 ET

Peak Energy raises $55M Series A to commercialize sodium-ion battery technology and launches pilot program with key customers for delivery of first systems in 2025

DENVER and SAN FRANCISCO, July 17, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Peak Energy, a U.S.-based company developing low-cost, giga-scale energy storage technology for the grid, today announced it has secured its $55M Series A to launch full-scale production of its proven sodium-ion battery technology. Xora Innovation, an Early-Stage deep tech investing platform of Temasek, led the round, with significant participation from existing investor Eclipse, strategic partner TDK Ventures, and new investors Lachy Groom, Tishman Speyer, TechEnergy Ventures, Doral Energy-Tech Ventures and DETV-Scania Invest.

U.S. energy demand is skyrocketing. With the rise of AI and increased EV adoption, e lectricity d emand in the U.S. is forecasted to grow as much as 20% by 2030. This represents a massive jump after a decade of flat growth — and as a result, electric utilities are almost doubling their forecasts for how much additional power they'll need to produce by 2028. Without access to affordable, reliable clean energy, the U.S. will likely rely on gas-powered peaker plants or, even worse, keep old, polluting coal power plants running, undoing progress on reducing carbon emissions. Renewables can produce great amounts of energy at extremely low cost under ideal conditions, but high variance in power generation renders them incapable of meeting 24-hour demand alone. Utility-scale storage with highly cost-effective technologies like sodium-ion is the only way for the U.S. to reap the maximum benefits of clean energy sources to power the grid and avoid a disastrous return to fossil fuel-burning power plants.

"AI should represent a step forward, not a step backward," said Landon Mossburg, co-founder and CEO of Peak Energy. "As energy demand grows, we must capitalize on the potential of renewables to provide dependable, inexpensive energy to fuel a new era of technological advancement. Utility-scale storage powered by sodium-ion is the answer to securing this future on a resilient, decarbonized grid."

Sodium-ion is a stable and proven battery chemistry that offers advantages in cost, supply chain security, scale, and safety over lithium-ion, the industry's current default battery storage choice. With the shift to sodium-ion technology underway worldwide at giga-scale, Peak Energy has emerged as the company best suited to deliver utility-scale sodium-ion storage in the U.S. The Series A financing from Xora Innovation, Eclipse, TDK Ventures, and other new strategic investors marks a pivotal inflection point in the clean energy transition and secures the future of the U.S. grid with domestically produced storage.

"The need for a new utility-scale storage standard is not a decade away, it's right now," said Phil Inagaki, Managing Partner & Chief Investment Officer at Xora Innovation. "Peak Energy has assembled a world-class team with unrivaled experience and reputation for delivering clean energy technology at scale, quickly. The timing for this market is exceptional, with Peak Energy poised to become a global leader in sodium-ion storage production and deployment. The team at Peak Energy has been moving at a truly exceptional pace, and Xora looks forward to supporting the company's ambitious growth plans."

"Peak Energy's work is paramount to the quality of life for everyone on our planet," said Greg Reichow, partner at Eclipse. "The team at Peak Energy not only has the deep industry experience to bring this company to scale, but also has the appropriate sense of urgency, as evidenced by this latest funding round. The time is now to build an American battery company to compete with the international giants at scale, and Eclipse believes this is the team to do it."

As Peak Energy moves fast to industrialize sodium-ion, the company is already experiencing significant demand for its battery systems. With access to meaningful new capital, Peak Energy enters the next phase of growth, launching the first full-scale production of sodium-ion storage in the U.S. The company's sodium-ion batteries will deploy to a select group of six premier customers participating in its pilot program as early as next year. The roster includes three of the top five largest Independent Power Producers (IPPs) and electric utility companies in the country.

In addition to Xora Innovation, Peak Energy welcomes new strategic investors including global real estate developer, owner, operator and investor Tishman Speyer, venture capitalist Lachy Groom, Doral Energy-Tech Ventures and DETV-Scania Invest, and TechEnergy Ventures, CVC of Techint, one of the largest LATAM industrial groups. This collective of leading innovators across renewables, real estate development, and AI reflects Peak Energy's wide-ranging capabilities to revolutionize clean energy for everything from powering commercial buildings in dense urban cities to supplying datacenters with abundant, low-cost energy needed to unlock the future of AI.

"Reinvesting in our future means embracing innovations like Peak Energy's sodium-ion technology, paving the way for a sustainable and secure energy landscape," said Anil Achyuta, Managing Director at TDK Ventures. "By supporting Peak Energy, we're not just investing in a company; we're investing in a transformative solution that addresses critical challenges in energy storage, enhances national energy security, and propels environmental sustainability forward."

The latest investment comes on the heels of Peak Energy's launch from stealth less than a year ago with a $10M seed round and the addition of Apple and Tesla veteran Liam O'Connor as co-founder and COO. In addition to seeding full-scale deployments of its sodium-ion systems to pilot program customers next year, Peak Energy is on track to break ground on building the first domestic, giga-scale sodium-ion battery factory slated to open in 2027.

For more information on Peak Energy, visit www.peakenergy.com.

About Peak Energy
Founded in 2023, Peak Energy is a U.S.-based company developing low-cost, giga-scale energy storage technology to accelerate the renewable energy transition. Founded by industry veterans from Tesla, Northvolt and Enovix, the company is on a mission to accelerate grid decarbonization while drastically lowering the cost of energy storage and establishing the U.S. as a global leader in the sodium-ion market. For more information, visit www.peakenergy.com.

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SOURCE Peak Energy