UK energy storage specialist Connected Energy has landed a major investment package from a trio of established energy investors. Connected has secured £5 million in investment from Sumitomo Corporation, Macquarie and energy giant Engie, a package which the firm said would provide it with a platform to deliver its “next phase of international growth”. The firm uses second-life EV batteries to produce stationary energy storage systems for C&I customers, a business which Connected described itself as at the forefront of. A total of 11 systems have been deployed across the UK, Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands to date, and the Newcastle upon Tyne-headquartered company now intends to use the stimulus package to pursue a pipeline of projects which vary in size from 50kW to 20MW. Matthew Lumsden, chief executive at Connected Energy, pointed to Sumitomo’s experience in working with second-life batteries - the Japanese trading giant works alongside Nissan in the same field - as a driver behind the investment, and said the firm’s relationship with Engie had gone from “strength to strength” since the French energy major first invested in Connected in 2017. “The time is now right for us to scale up the business and the investment will enable us to do so. We have some exciting times and projects ahead of us and look forward to further capturing the benefits of the circular economy,” he added. Engie’s second investment in Connected Energy comes amidst a flurry of activity from the company, having recently purchased a minority stake in aggregator Kiwi Power and purchased UK EV charging firm ChargePoint Services this week. Hendrik Van Asbroeck, MD of Engie New Ventures, said: “Engie offers innovative and effective energy solutions as-a-service to overcome the challenges of the transition to clean energy for our customers. Connected Energy is one of the cornerstones for success with its leading and environmentally friendly energy storage solutions. Their specific know how on second life batteries enables ENGIE access new types of storage projects.”
Newcastle upon Tyne-based storage systems manufacturer Connected Energy has secured £5m ($6.3m) from Engie, Sumitomo Corporation and Macquarie. The deal is the first of its kind in Europe for a company that specialises in energy storage.