Nikola and Republic scrap electric trash truck
The pair were working to design and build a refuse truck based on a zero-emissions battery-electric drive platform and body while also integrating multiple new systems into a new state-of-the-art vehicle.
Energy storage investments 2020: VC and equity firms put more than $500 million in these 25 battery startups
Here’s a year-end round-up of VC investments across the energy storage value stack.
Morning Brief: Swell raises $450M for VPPs, Terra-Gen and Mortenson start on world’s largest standalone solar and storage project
Also in the brief: CPS Energy opened bidding last week on a contract that will double its solar capacity and add 500 MW of backup power to the grid.
Relectrify gets the most out of second-life battery systems
After more than a year of testing, Relectrify has released interim results of a pilot that combines repurposed batteries from Nissan Leaf vehicles with proprietary inverter technology to create a battery system that has exceeded expectations.
QuantumScape finally unstealths — with breakthrough performance in solid state batteries
After ten secretive years, several hundred million dollars spent, and the efforts of hundreds of scientists and engineers, QuantumScape went public on a video call today with the performance results of its solid-state battery — and its potential impact on the electric vehicle industry.
SPAC, the final frontier: QuantumScape raises $680M for advanced EV batteries, TJ Rodgers raises $200M in SPAC IPOs, plus EVs galore and Stem
Once sort of disreputable, the SPAC is now a “financial innovation” and a “funding mechanism for ambitious companies who are in the midst of a growth phase-change,” in the eyes of some investors. Here’s a roundup.
pv magazine video: US storage market under spotlight
In pv magazine’s second roundtable session, Advanced technologies, the U.S. storage market came under the spotlight – in particular, the lessons that can be learned from solar as the market moves towards greater maturity. Also under discussion was the trend among PV manufacturers to producing ever larger cells and modules in the continuous drive to bring down LCOE. But is big necessarily better?
Update: Form Energy’s stealthy ‘aqueous air battery’ with 150-hour duration lands $76 million funding round
The holy grail of energy storage has always been low-cost and long-duration. Form Energy intends on deploying a 1 MW/150 MWh system with a Minnesota utility before 2023, an unprecedented energy storage duration if successful.
The misunderstood power of lithium-ion
As the world continues shifting towards lithium-ion as an advanced energy solution for all power applications, ongoing education on the technology’s chemistry, uses and limitations are essential.
Clean energy industry groups CALSSA, SEIA, ACORE mount a full-court press for recovery role and jobs
“As Congress looks to recover jobs and spur new economic activity that leads to job growth and consumer savings, they should prioritize extending and expanding the ITC for distributed clean energy,” CALSSA said.
