Introducing The Clean Fight: Energy Storage Edition
The Clean Fight NY Presents Third Cohort of Startups Focused On Energy Storage Innovation & Manufacturing in New York
Ten growth-stage companies join the program to accelerate New York’s position as a U.S. hub for energy storage
New York, NY (November 28, 2022) - The Clean Fight New York, a not-for-profit accelerator powered by New Energy Nexus, that helps scale growth-stage climate tech companies in New York, today announced its third cohort of startups. The program will focus on battery and energy storage solutions that can help speed the clean energy transition and position New York as a hub for energy storage innovation, development and manufacturing. The program will be run in collaboration with the New York Battery and Energy Storage Technology Consortium (NY-BEST) and Binghamton University, home to the 2019 Nobel Laureate inventor of the Li-ion battery, M. Stanley Whittingham.
The goal of the program is to help selected startups to successfully and rapidly scale sales and manufacturing in New York. To facilitate this, each of the selected companies is eligible for a range of tailored benefits, valued at up to $100,000 per company to support capacity building, deployments or manufacturing capabilities in New York; hands-on matchmaking with industry-leading customer and capital partners; bespoke support services; and expert insight into navigating the New York State market.
“This is an exciting time for energy storage in New York with investment and resources from both the public and private sector at an all-time high. Along with our exceptional customer and capital partners, we’re thrilled to help this world-class group of startups establish and expand their presence in New York, supporting business development and manufacturing across the State. Batteries and energy storage are an essential component of the energy transition, ensuring a resilient, electrified and clean economy for all" said Kate Frucher, Managing Director, The Clean Fight.
This third cohort of companies comes at a time when federal government, state government and the private sector are investing billions of dollars in energy storage, recognizing its importance in the just clean energy transition, ensuring resilience and energy flexibility for all.
The complete list of Cohort 3 companies includes:
- Cadenza Innovation makes novel battery packs designed to address one of the greatest concerns with Lithium-Ion batteries - fire prevention, making them safer, more reliable and lower cost.
- e-Zinc makes battery cells that store electrical energy within zinc metal, storing hundreds of hours of energy at a significantly lower cost. This can dramatically improve the value proposition of intermittent electricity such as wind and solar.
- eCAMION delivers a Distributed Energy Resource solution for customers looking to manage batteries, solar installations, and EV chargers to maximize efficiency while minimizing cost and strain to the grid.
- Electrovaya makes batteries with an exceptional combination of high energy density, safety and longevity, making them particularly well suited to heavy use vehicles such as electric trucks and buses.
- Elonroad produces dynamic EV charging solutions embedded into roads, allowing for charging on the go. This also enables battery sizes to be reduced by up to 80%.
- Glaciem Cooling’s heat pump technology provides heating and cooling to commercial and industrial customers, combined with a phase change thermal battery to provide integrated energy storage, for improved efficiency and cost.
- OhmConnect builds Virtual Power Plants by connecting to residential batteries, EVs and smart thermostats, reacting in real time to the needs of the grid, reducing reliance on high-pollution peaker plants and lowering GHG emissions.
- Portable Electric makes portable, battery-based generators to replace gas and diesel generators, providing clean, silent power on demand. Their systems are used on job sites, for emergency EV and fleet charging, and as backup power.
- Viridi designs and builds distributed energy storage systems that are affordable, scalable and safe enough for use in occupied buildings, providing on-demand power for industrial, medical, commercial and residential applications.
- Yotta Energy produces distributed energy products, including EV chargers and the first solar battery that integrates behind rooftop solar panels. The integrated battery significantly reduces installation costs, along with its plug-and-play design that means if you can install a solar module, you can install their battery.
“New York's manufacturing base, skilled workforce, and institutional research capacity, continue to support the tremendous growth of storage innovation and deployment in the state,” said John Lochner, Vice President of Innovation at the New York State Research and Development Authority. “The Clean Fight’s energy storage cohort is positioned to further strengthen this ecosystem, ensuring New York and the U.S. can meet our climate goals.”
Throughout the duration of the 6-month program, the ten companies will be working with The Clean Fight’s world-class customer and capital partners. The Clean Fight’s customer partners are on the leading edge of deploying innovative energy storage solutions, supporting startups in rapid scaling. The exceptional group of investment and financing partners are leading the field in enabling startups to grow through direct investment, and, critically, facilitating the deployment of solutions through project financing and lending.
Customer partners include Bren-Tronics, Brooklyn Navy Yard, Con Edison, Fluence, Governors Island, Jupiter Power, Passkey (SK E&S), The Raymond Corporation (a Toyota Industries Corp. company) and Turner Construction Company. National Grid is a customer advisor.
Capital partners include Amalgamated Bank, BMO Impact Investment Fund, Broadscale, Closed Loop Partners, Energy Impact Partners (EIP), Fifth Wall, Generate Capital, NYCEEC, NY Green Bank, New York Ventures at Empire State Development, Obvious Ventures, Raise Green, Temasek, Silicon Valley Bank, and Wellington Management.
The new energy storage program is supported by an award from the Department of Energy’s Energy Program for Innovation Clusters (EPIC) and by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), helping reach New York State’s goal of 6 gigawatts of installed energy storage by 2030 to achieve 100 percent zero-emission electricity by 2040. It will also help meet the Department of Energy’s Energy Storage Grand Challenge, which accelerates the development, commercialization, and utilization of next-generation energy storage technologies and sustains American global leadership in energy storage.
“The development of the energy storage and manufacturing sectors requires bold new ideas, scrappy entrepreneurship, and a supportive ecosystem to ensure that promising new technologies have the chance to make a real impact in the market,” said the U.S. Department of Energy’s Chief Commercialization Officer and Director of the Office of Technology Transitions Dr. Vanessa Z. Chan “The Clean Fight NY are a key partner in supporting startups in New York and the Northeast, and I look forward to the success of their third cohort.”
Launched in 2020, The Clean Fight is on a mission to find the most promising growth-stage clean energy startups to quickly scale in New York. The first two cohorts of eighteen companies have made significant strides scaling their solutions and businesses in New York, including: being awarded $1.7M in grant funding from The Clean Fight for projects and deployments in New York State, and raising over $230 million in follow-on funding.
To keep up with The Clean Fight and learn more about these startups, visit www.thecleanfight.com or www.linkedin.com/company/the-clean-fight for more.
About The Clean Fight
The Clean Fight is a not-for-profit climate tech organization, powered by New Energy Nexus, designed to help the world’s best growth-stage startups significantly scale their business in New York State, while boosting economic opportunity and job creation for all. The core accelerator program is supported by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), an EPIC award from the U.S. Department of Energy, and by the U.S. Economic Development Administration. The Clean Fight is also a member of the winning New Energy New York coalition, who were awarded $113M as part of the Biden Administration’s Build Back Better Regional Challenge. www.thecleanfight.com
About The New York Battery and Energy Storage Technology Consortium (NY-BEST) The New York Battery and Energy Storage Technology (NY-BEST) Consortium is a non-profit corporation founded in 2010 in collaboration with New York State and NYSERDA to position New York State as a global leader in energy storage technology including applications in transportation, grid storage, and power electronics. An industry-led consortium with more than 185 members, NY-BEST’s mission is to catalyze and grow the energy storage industry and establish New York State as a global leader in the energy storage industry. www.ny-best.org/
About Binghamton University Binghamton University is a world-class institution that offers students a broad, interdisciplinary education with an international perspective and one of the most vibrant research programs in the nation. Binghamton is known for fostering a thriving cleantech ecosystem from research on battery chemistries to support of entrepreneurs and cleantech startups. www.binghamton.edu
About New Energy Nexus
New Energy Nexus is a non-profit international organization that strives towards an abundant world with a 100% clean energy economy for 100% of the population in the shortest time possible. To achieve this goal, New Energy Nexus supports diverse clean energy entrepreneurs with funds, accelerators, and networks. Started in California in 2004, they now operate programs in New York, China, India, Southeast Asia, and East Africa. www.newenergynexus.com
###
Media Contact
Pakelody Cheam