Energy Vault Inks $100 M Deal to Deploy its Energy Storage Tech in China

Swiss energy storage firm Energy Vault has announced a License and Royalty agreement for renewable energy storage with Atlas Renewable and their majority investor China Tianying, an international environmental management and waste remediation corporation engaged in smart urban environmental services, resource recycling and recovery, and zero-carbon clean energy technologies.

The agreement supports the deployment of Energy Vault’s proprietary gravity energy storage technology and energy management software platform within mainland China and the Special Administrative Regions (SAR) of Hong Kong and Macau.

In addition, Atlas Renewable is making a $50 million investment to upsize the current private placement investment from $150 million to $200 million, and paying an additional $50 million in 2022 licensing fees for use and deployment of Energy Vault’s gravity energy storage technology.

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China has one overarching State-mandated environmental policy: Carbon Peak in 2030 and Carbon Neutrality in 2060 commonly referred to as “30-60.” This policy drives modern China and results from commitments made by the country’s leadership: 30-60 is an industrial, environmental, energy, social and political policy rolled into one.

China plans to reduce waste, promote renewables and next generation fuels like hydrogen and reform its electricity grid while increasing wind and solar capacity to 1200 gigawatts by 2030 – all to cut off increased carbon emissions growth.

The much harder part is Carbon Neutrality 2060: a state of net-zero carbon dioxide emissions. This phase calls for the reduction of carbon emissions on a societal basis by 2060, essentially phasing out a carbon-based economic model for a non-carbon-based economy. Deployment of economical and sustainable grid-scale energy storage technology is a critical component to accelerating the growth of renewable energy in China and advancing China’s decarbonization goals.

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Energy Vault and Atlas Renewable have signed a $50 million licensing agreement for the use of Energy Vault’s proprietary gravity-based energy storage technology in China. The agreement includes terms governing volume-based deployment royalties and covers maintenance, monitoring and the beneficial re-use of waste materials within Energy Vault’s composite blocks. The payments of the $50 million licensing fees are scheduled to be made in 2022.

The agreement reportedly represents the first gravity-based storage partnership between a U.S. and Chinese company for the deployment of the technology in China. The licensing agreement, which also marks a first of its kind for Energy Vault, is for the use of its EVx™ and EVRC™ product platforms. The companies expect to start construction of the first 100MWh system in Q2 2022 at the selected site in Rudong, Jiangsu Province located outside of Shanghai.

The companies will also assess the reuse of available waste materials such as coal combustion residuals, mine tailings, waste fiberglass and concrete debris as a beneficial re-use within the “mobile masses” used in the construction of the gravity energy storage systems. The licensing agreement is separate and additional to Atlas Renewable LLC’s $50 million PIPE investment.

“We see broad applications for implementing Energy Vault’s unique gravity energy storage and power generation system. Energy Vault’s novel solution lifts large mobile masses into position using excess power from solar, wind, or other power generation facilities and generates electricity by lowering blocks using natural gravitational forces when it is needed most,” said Neil Bush Chairman of Atlas Renewable.

Chairman of CNTY, Yan Shengjun, stated, “As China’s new green energy industry is booming, the introduction of world class innovative energy storage technology this year will be showcased in China by Energy Vault. This effort is of great importance to the nation and to supporting China’s stated goals of Carbon Peak by 2030 and Carbon Neutrality by 2060.”