The UK Infrastructure Bank (UKIB) has announced a £25 million direct equity investment into Invinity Energy Systems plc, a manufacturer of vanadium flow batteries to support the commercial development of longer-duration energy storage from its base in Bathgate.
“The bank’s financing forms the cornerstone of a £56 million fundraise with UKIB’s investment accelerating the deployment of Invinity’s existing and next generation vanadium flow battery products onto the UK grid,” said UKIB.
“Durable and easy to deploy at scale, Invinity’s batteries have lower levels of degradation compared to other storage technologies and do not suffer from thermal runaway making them well suited to a broad range of grid-scale battery applications.
“In line with the bank’s regional growth mandate, the investment will support the expansion of Invinity’s footprint in Scotland, boosting manufacturing in the nation and unlocking opportunities for skilled jobs.
“The proposed opening of a new manufacturing site in Scotland in addition to its existing facility in Bathgate will create up to 41 new jobs in the region.
“Integrating longer-duration energy storage onto the grid is vital to supporting the UK’s net zero transition as the country adopts more variable energy sources like wind and solar and continues the rapid electrification of its transport and heat networks.
“Vanadium flow batteries are one the most promising proven technologies for longer-duration battery storage between 4-12hrs. Invinity’s batteries are ideally suited to manage energy supply and demand volatility with a number of advantages over more well-established lithium-ion batteries.
“Invinity’s fundraise, including UKIB’s investment, is subject to the approval of the company’s shareholders at a general meeting to be held later this month.”
UK Infrastructure Bank CEO John Flint said: “Electricity storage technologies have a crucial role to play in balancing the energy system in response to volatility in supply and demand as the UK transitions to net zero.
“However, the market of investors in more nascent longer-duration technologies like vanadium flow has developed more slowly than for lithium-ion batteries.
“Our cornerstone investment has helped Invinity to mobilise the additional private investment needed to scale their manufacturing, supporting the development of a promising new longer-duration technology.”
Invinity Energy Systems CEO Larry Zulch said: “We believe that long duration energy storage has an essential role to play in the global transition to a sustainable electricity system.
“This investment provides Invinity with the opportunity to scale up to help meet the significant global demand for batteries with the characteristics that make our vanadium flow battery unique: high performance, long asset life, compelling total ownership economics, and no propensity to catch fire.
“We are grateful for the support of the UK Infrastructure Bank as we demonstrate the viability of LDES in the UK with battery systems produced in the UK.
“We’re also grateful for the support of existing investors who enabled us to advance Mistral, our next-generation battery, to near completion, and for the support of new investors, such as Korea Investment Partners, who have embraced our vision of profitably meeting global demand for LDES.”