Energy Dome, the firm behind the CO2 Battery™, the innovative long-duration energy storage solution, announced it has closed a €40m (circa $44m) Series B funding round. The funding round was led by Eni Next, the corporate venture capital arm of Eni. Eni Next invests in high-growth start-ups to boost the energy transition to a zero-carbon future. Its portfolio includes start-ups with the most disruptive technologies, such as energy storage and fusion.
Who were the participants of Energy Dome’s Series B?
Energy Dome’s Series B funding round was co-led by Neva SGR, the venture capital company of Intesa Sanpaolo, one of Europe’s largest banking groups. Climate tech and energy transition technologies are among the key areas of the investment strategy for Neva SGR.
Existing investors that followed Energy Dome’s Series B round include Barclays’ Sustainable Impact Capital, CDP Venture Capital, Italian asset management firm owned by CDP Equity Spa, and Invitalia, to foster the development of all players in the innovation ecosystem via its Evolution Fund, Novum Capital Partners, a Swiss multi-family office via its investors, and 360 Capital, a Paris- and Milan-based VC with the utility A2A as one of the main limited partners.
Also joining the round is Japan Energy Fund, a climate tech venture fund representing entities including Biprogy, Enechange, Mitsui Sumitomo Trust Bank and Toshiba Energy Systems. Others include Elemental Excelerator, a U.S. nonprofit investor focused on climate tech. The financing round brings invested-in capital in Energy Dome to some €54m. Proceeds from this investment will enable Energy Dome to enter full commercial scaling mode on a global basis.
With participation from well-capitalized international investors, this Series B round will enable further commercialization of Energy Dome’s technology around the world and will support the expansion of Energy Dome’s team in key markets, with a specific focus on the U.S.
What does the funding mean for Energy Dome?
Claudio Spadacini, Energy Dome’s Founder and CEO, said: “Imagine a system that can store renewable energy with 75% RTE (AC-AC, MV-MV) and at a cost which is half of lithium. A system that has no degradation over 30 years and is made of just steel, water and CO2.”
“Now imagine that that system is made of existing and well-known components that any power plant operator is capable of maintaining and operating, and those components are deployable at GWh scale globally with no bottlenecks on the supply chain or specific site constraints. If you like this idea, stop imagining. Because this is reality, the tech is sorted.”
“Our CO2 Battery™ is ready for the market and, after closing the Series B round, we are ready to guarantee its performance to any customer that is real about getting rid of fossil fuels and substituting with dispatchable renewable energies,” Claudio Spadacini added.
Energy Dome’s solution for long-duration energy storage is achieving an enthusiastic reception in the global marketplace. The firm is working with several utilities, independent power producers and corporate customers in key markets, resulting in a qualified pipeline that exceeds 9GWh in markets such as the U.S., Europe, South America, India and Australia.
Energy Dome’s short-term objective is to keep up the momentum gained so far; it went from start of operation to full commercial-scale deployment in just three years and will have two standard 20MW-200MWh frames commercially operational by the end of 2024. The first unit is under manufacturing, with the longest leading items being provided by key suppliers.
The use of proceeds of the round will serve to provide financial guarantees to clients as a demonstration that this team is ready to put their “skin in the game” alongside their clients in deploying the CO2 Battery™. The fund will also support Energy Dome’s business expansion in the U.S. to leverage at maximum from the opportunities deriving from the Inflation Reduction Act and the associated Investment Tax Credits available for utility-scale energy storage.
