Image: 1.2MW system being installed in Belgium by Connected Energy
Connected Energy powers up with five million pounds of investment. The company that has developed the world’s only commercially available system that uses second-life electric vehicle battery packs to provide energy storage solutions, has received further investment from Engie, Macquarie and Japanese trading giant, Sumitomo Corporation.
The cash injection is CE’s second in two years. Engie and Macquarie invested £3m last year in the firm, which takes second-hand battery packs from Renault electric vehicles to create storage systems.
CEO Matthew Lumsden said the company, would use the cash to expand, with new staff being recruited to its offices in The Core on Newcastle-Upon-Tyne Helix site later this year.
The time is now right for us to scale up the business and the investment will enable us to do so. We have some exciting times and projects ahead of us and look forward to further capturing the benefits of the circular economy.
Connected Energy’s solution (called E-STOR) is a British designed technology that has placed the company as worldwide pioneers of the circular economy in energy storage. The company has only been trading since 2015 but already has 11 E-STOR systems deployed in the UK, Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands and a growing portfolio of blue-chip clients.
The company was first formed to commercialise research initiated by Newcastle based Future Transport Systems. The systems have a range of different applications including
- Grid support for electric vehicle charging
- Behind the meter energy/power optimisation for commercial buildings
- Power sources for remote sites
- Optimisation for small to medium scale renewable generation
- Providing commercial services to National Grid
Newcastle Helix is a 24-acre site that has been developed by Newcastle City Council, Newcastle University and Legal & General to harness and commercialise world-leading research. Office space at The Core is specifically for businesses working with future city challenges such as energy, data and the environment. Further business space is now available in neighbouring buildings with more to follow in 2020.
For more details, see website: www.c-e-int.com