Estonian graphene ultracapacitor pioneer receives 9.8m euros injection
The round has been led by Harju Elekter Group (HAE1T), which owns electrical equipment manufacturing plants in the Nordic-Baltic markets, and UP Invest, one of largest investment firms in the Baltic region.
Skeleton Technologies plans to use the funds for ramping up production of the company’s graphene-based ultracapacitors to meet the strong demand for electrical engineering applications from a growing customer base, including hybrid truck manufacturers, Tier 1 automotives and grid-scale energy storage companies. In May 2015, Skeleton Technologies announced a deal with the European Space Agency to send ultracapacitors into orbit for the first time in the European space programme.
Ultracapacitors can deliver more than 1 million life cycles and recharge in less than a few seconds.
“Series B financing allows us to bring our graphene-based ultracapacitors to our increasing customer base. We are perfectly positioned to take advantage of the growing market opportunity, especially in Europe where the only other manufacturer is Bolloré Group-backed Blue Solutions,” said Skeleton Technologies CEO Taavi Madiberk.
“Elon Musk has predicted that ultracapacitors will be the future for electric vehicles, replacing batteries in the longer term. We will fulfill that prediction, starting with doubling the energy density of our current products to lead acid battery levels of 20 Wh/kg by 2017.”
“We are convinced that ultracapacitor-based solutions will increasingly be used in electrotechnical and manufacturing automation applications for energy storage, control and high-power fast switching. Our participation in this field gives us the ability to cooperate in potential future applications and also creates a synergy in participating in the development of ultracapacitor modules,” explained Harju Elekter Group CEO, Andrus Allikmäe.
Skeleton Technologies claims to be the only manufacturer to use graphene in their ultracapacitor cells. The company uses a patented material synthesized from inorganic compounds that has curved graphene layers allowing for better conductivity and higher surface area. The material has allowed the company to deliver twice the energy density and five times the power density of competitors’ products.
Based in Estonia and Germany, Skeleton Technologies has 42 employees and plans to increase the headcount with a focus on expanding the mid-scale Estonian manufacturing facilities and acceleration plans for mass manufacturing in Saxony, Germany. Skeleton Technologies has now raised a total of €13.7 million.
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