A group of leading Nordic venture capital firms have invested in a seed funding round of Norwegian solar energy storage startup Photoncycle, to help it prepare for a market launch in Europe. The €5 million ($5.4 million) combined funding will also enable the company to pilot its renewable energy systems.
Led by Finland's Lifeline Ventures, this funding round includes participation from Sweden's Luminar Ventures, Norway's Momentum Partners and Eviny Ventures.
Photoncycle's technology addresses the surplus electricity generated by residential rooftop solar systems that is not accommodated by the distribution grids. It places this surplus solar electricity from rooftop PV and the grid into long-term storage, next to the house using an electrolyzer.
Green hydrogen produced from water and electricity is stored as a solid in Photoncycle's storage system. It releases this energy on demand to meet electricity and heating requirements at home and at the grid level.
The company explains that its energy storage solution has a gravimetric energy density of close to 3.5 kWh/kg as compared to 0.3 kWh/kg for a lithium-ion battery.
Photoncycle explains, "A storage system of 3 m3 can store up to 10,000 kWh of energy, sufficient to store the whole surplus electricity production in the summer season in most households."
Using this long-term storage, households will be able to take advantage of seasonal fluctuations in energy prices, importing electricity from the grid during periods when prices are low, and exporting the same to the grid when the prices are high.
Photoncycle's prototype of its core technology was prepared at the lab after integrating various components that have since been scaled 100 times from the lab scale, following a feasibility study from European science research institute SINTEF.
It now aims to develop a full-scale pilot in 2024 and launch it in the residential household market in 2025. The seed funding will support it to bring the product to the market.
"There has been massive interest for the round from many corners of the world. We selected an investor group that we think best can support the next steps of our journey," said Photoncycle Founder and CEO, Bjørn Brandtzæg. "This venture funding enables us to pilot our groundbreaking renewable energy system and prepare for market launch in Europe."
Lifeline Ventures' Partner and Head of Climate Investments, Teemu Mattila stated, "Residential energy accounts for about 20% of total GHG emissions Photoncycle has potential to bring that close to 0%, so it feels great to invest in teams which are making a dent in this world!"