Allegro Energy, an Australian battery startup, has secured A$17.5 million in a Series A funding round from a mix of new and existing investors. The funding was led by US climate change fund The Grantham Foundation, with support from US fund Lightbank and British funds Melt Ventures and Impact Ventures. The Newcastle-based company has developed water-based Redox Flow Batteries (RFB) for storing renewable energy.
Allegro plans to build an 800 KWh pilot storage facility at Origin Energy’s Eraring site in New South Wales, Australia, later this year. Origin acquired a five percent equity stake in Allegro in June last year, aiming to support the phased development of 60 MWh pilot RFB capacity at its own facilities. The company has the option to support Allegro through to funding its first gigafactory.
Allegro co-founder and CEO Dr. Thomas Nann said in a statement, “We are thrilled to be among the companies to have been given global recognition by The Grantham Foundation while also successfully drawing critical local capital and strategic support from some of the leading names in the renewable energy space.
Funding for Allegro’s renewable batteries
These funds will help us rapidly accelerate our manufacturing capacity.”
Allegro’s RFB technology is water-based, which the company says makes them a safer and more environmentally friendly option than other battery technologies. The batteries contain no scarce materials, and all key components are recyclable, according to Allegro. The company also claims its RFBs and supercapacitors are non-flammable and non-corrosive, besides being cheaper than competing technologies.
The Eraring site, which is near Australia’s largest coal-fired power plant, will require minimal preparation work. Installation is expected to start in August 2023, with the battery set to be commissioned by late 2024. The Eraring black coal power plant, which currently provides 2,880MW to the National Electricity Market (NEM), is scheduled to close in August 2027.
The New South Wales government had controversially extended its operation by two years to guarantee a maximum of electricity supply. Piers Grove, a general partner at Impact Ventures, highlighted the technology’s potential for substantial global impact. The collaboration with Origin Energy and the successful Series A funding round position Allegro to play a critical role in transitioning energy storage technologies toward more sustainable and economically viable solutions.
