First commercial-scale CO2 battery receives funding

At COP28, energy storage company Energy Dome announced a funding commitment for its first CO2-based thermomechanical energy storage system in Sardinia, Italy.

The company said the project will use a standard frame 20MW/200MWh CO2 battery that can supply electricity to the grid for 10 hours continuously. It will be the first in a series of identical installations designed with the same technology, which Energy Dome said will reduce costs and speed up the bankability of future modular, standardized CO2 battery frame installations.

Energy Dome said that the CO2 battery does not use rare metals or lithium materials, and its main components are based on existing and known supply chains. The working principle of the battery is to control the change of CO2 between gas and liquid. When CO2 heats up, it evaporates and expands, driving turbines to generate electricity.

Energy Dome says no emissions are released into the atmosphere in the process, and that costs are reduced by storing the CO2 in liquid form at ambient temperature. In addition, the company claims its CO2 batteries have a lifespan of 30 years, compared to 12 years or less for lithium-ion batteries.

The commercial operation date for the storage facility is expected to take place in the third quarter of 2024.

Funding will be provided in the form of project-level grant commitments, up to €35 million from Bill Gates’ Breakthrough Energy Catalyst, and a €25 million venture debt financing commitment from the European Investment Bank, both subject to meeting financing conditions. The funds will be provided through the EU-Breakthrough Energy Catalyst partnership.

Breakthrough Energy Catalyst provides funding and investments for commercial projects in emerging climate technologies. By investing in these opportunities, Catalyst seeks to accelerate the adoption of these technologies around the world and reduce their costs.

The European Investment Bank is expected to provide €25 million in venture debt financing for the project, backed by InvestEU. The EU is matching capital with Catalyst through the InvestEU programme of the European Investment Bank (as implementing partner of the European Commission), using funds provided by the Horizon European Innovation Fund.

(Source: Energy Dome Global Energy Storage Network, New Energy Network Comprehensive)