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Rondo announces 90 GWh heat battery factory
U.S.-based Rondo Energy
will operate the world’s largest battery factory in
Thailand, two and a half times the size of Tesla’s Gigafactory.
27
June
2023
By
RYAN KENNEDY
![](images/images_06_27_2023/DSC08093-1536x1024-1-1200x800.jpg)
Image: Rondo Energy
From pv magazine USA
Rondo Energy,
developer of the Rondo Heat Battery, announced it has partnered with
Siam Cement Group to expand its factory to a 90 GWh capacity. The
Thailand facility currently produces 2.4 GWh of industrial heat
batteries and is planned to be expanded to the largest battery factory
in the world.
The Bill Gates-backed company developed its heat battery as a way to
decarbonize the industrial sector. Rondo’s battery, called the “brick
toaster,” is made of readily available materials like oxygen, silicon,
aluminum, and iron. The battery stores electric power as heat in
refractory brick, a technology that has been used in industrial heat
storage for centuries.
The heat batteries transform intermittent wind and solar power into
the continuous high-temperature and low-cost heat that the industry
demands. This planned production expansion is expected to support a
wide range of industries, from mining and metals to fuels to food
production, at facilities around the world.
“Electric thermal energy storage can play a useful role in addressing
the needs of the industrial sector, which has been slow to decarbonize.
And, from an energy security standpoint, it is worth noting that this
technology avoids the use of scarce and expensive materials,” said
Pavel Molchanov, energy analyst at Raymond James.
The batteries store and dispatch heat without the use of combustibles,
critical minerals, or liquids. With a Rondo Heat battery, solar and
wind can deliver continuous zero-carbon industrial heat at a lower
cost than fossil fuels, said the company.
The batteries can store more than 1 MWh per square meter, a high level
of density that preserves area use at industrial facilities. Rondo
said the batteries can be integrated into existing process heating
equipment, allowing for significant emissions reductions without the
need for a factory overhaul. The batteries are expected to operate for
40 years or more with no performance degradation.
![](images/images_06_27_2023/yellow-top.png)
Image: Rondo Energy
Heavy industrial processes have
proven to be one of the most difficult sectors to decarbonize and
account for about 24% of global emissions, according to Our World in
Data. The 90 GWh of planned capacity is expected to result in 12
million tons of carbon dioxide emissions abatement annually,
equivalent to removing over 4 million gas-powered vehicles from the
road each year.
Rondo
said its batteries offer continuous power with a 95% annual capacity
while operating on input power as low as 15% capacity factor, or four
hours of dispatchable power generation per day.
“Our studies of customer facilities are showing 50% to 90% reductions
in emissions and reductions in operating costs of 30% or more,” said
Jeremey Keller, senior vice president of Rondo Energy.
In early 2022, Rondo Energy announced the closing of a $22 million
Series A funding round to support its technology, a renewable energy
heat battery aimed at reducing the carbon impact of industrial
processes. The funding round was led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures
and Energy Impact Partners.
“Over the last few years we’ve seen validation of our founding
vision,” said John O’Donnell, chief executive officer, Rondo Energy.
“Decarbonizing industrial heat is a trillion-dollar market requiring
far more storage than the electric grid. The technology is here now.
The demand is here now. This planned expansion means that the capacity
is here now as well.”
Green Play Ammonia™, Yielder® NFuel Energy.
Spokane, Washington. 99212
www.exactrix.com
509 995 1879 cell, Pacific.
exactrix@exactrix.com
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