Alfa Laval Supports New Funding of U.S. Energy-Storage Startup Malta
The Swedish manufacturer is also collaborating with Malta on the development of a heat exchanger key to the project.
U.S. startup Malta Inc., which is developing an electro-thermal energy-storage system, announced it has raised US$50 million in a Series B round of funding, with support from Swedish heat exchanger manufacturer Alfa Laval.
For Malta, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts (U.S.), the funding “marks an important milestone” towards its first full-scale system, which is expected to be operating in the 2024-2025 timeframe, said Alfa Laval in a statement.
Alfa Laval, which became part owner of Malta at its founding in 2018, is also collaborating with Malta on the development of the heat exchanger that is “a critical component of the technical solution,” said Alfa Laval.
The Swedish company makes heat exchangers for all natural refrigerant applications, including one it recently launched that caters to more CO2 applications.
Malta ‘s electro-thermal system can store energy from any source (i.e., wind, sun, or fossil fuels) in any location, with the potential to improve power grid stability and resilience, said Alfa Laval. While the system can store energy up to several days, early systems will focus on near-term applications for 10-12 hour durations.
“We believe that thermal storage will play an important role in the energy transition,” said Susanne Pahlén Åklundh, President of Alfa Laval’s Energy Division. “After working with the Malta team for the past two years on novel heat exchanger design and development, we remain excited about this solution and the potential impact it can have on climate change.”
“Our goal continues to be to create a scalable storage solution that will accelerate the expansion of renewable energy while improving grid stability and resilience,” said Ramya Swaminathan, CEO of Malta. “Alfa Laval has been a terrific partner to Malta from the founding of the company in 2018 and we look forward to continuing the great work that will help bring this solution to market.”
We believe that thermal storage will play an important role in the energy transition,” – Susanne Pahlén Åklundh, Alfa Laval.
Source: hydrocarbons21
