Dutch advanced materials company E-magy has raised EUR 20.5 million in new funding. Leading industrial business Hydro, impact investor Invest-NL and venture capital firm Rubio have invested in E-magy alongside existing impact investors SHIFT Invest and PDENH. The funds will be used to prepare for industrial-scale production and meet the growing demand from battery manufacturers and automotive OEMs for high-energy batteries.
The most common lithium-ion batteries currently found in electric vehicles (EVs) feature graphite as the active anode material. Yet, graphite’s physical and chemical properties limit batteries’ storage capacity. Silicon has long been recognized as a promising alternative anode material, given its wide availability and increased capacity, which is ten times that of graphite. However, silicon-dominant batteries typically swell and break when charged and discharged, frustrating battery manufacturers.
E-magy has created a new kind of silicon material with a nanoscale porous structure, which prevents batteries from swelling and breaking completely by containing the swelling within the nanopores. This revolutionary silicon-dominant anode material delivers 40% higher energy density and enables faster charging than existing graphite solutions. Furthermore, the company’s technology is easily scalable because it uses low-cost metallurgical-grade silicon that is abundantly available and environmentally benign. E-magy’s silicon is also compatible with existing lithium-ion battery manufacturing processes and installed factory equipment, making it a low-risk and easy-to-adopt solution.
Engineering team
“These funds will help us transition from our current pilot facility to a higher capacity, next-generation production line, ensuring we have the necessary capacity to meet growing market demand for higher energy density batteries,” commented Casper Peeters, CEO of E-magy. “We’ll also be able to grow our engineering team, bringing in more battery scientists and application engineers to support our customers in achieving the best results with our advanced materials.”
“Hydro aims to industrialize and scale sustainable battery materials by working with partners and leveraging our capabilities,” remarked Morten Halleraker, Head of Batteries at Hydro. “E-magy is a technology company with a promising product looking to improve battery performance significantly. Developing new battery technologies and materials will boost the green energy transition, and we believe silicon anodes will play an important role in this development. That’s why we’re excited to become a shareholder in E-magy and support its journey towards more innovative solutions and commercial success in the coming years.”
“Speeding up the transition towards a carbon-neutral economy is at the core of our investment strategy. We see this investment in E-magy as the next example of our strong commitment to supporting exciting technology and strong research and development driven scale-ups. Together with a fantastic group of likeminded co-investors we look forward to supporting E-magy’s international team of battery specialists on its clean e-mobility journey,” said Bram Sprangers, Investment Associate at Invest-NL. “E-magy’s innovative material emits up to six times less carbon dioxide in production of the material. It will enable the battery of an electric vehicle to be lighter and smaller, reducing weight of the car, reducing energy usage, and reducing emissions associated with the energy production to charge the car. Innovation driving impact,” added Helmer Schukken, Managing Partner Rubio Impact Ventures.
Hitting milestones
“We’re thrilled to continue to support E-magy and be part of its scale-up journey. The company has produced very encouraging results, including in late 2022 when it completed 500 battery cycles with silicon as the only active anode material,” commented Bram Ledeboer, Partner at SHIFT Invest. “Having supported E-magy since before its foundation, we’re proud to see the team continuously hitting its technology development milestones and the necessary proof points for scaling. This is reflected by this significant funding round and the onboarding of a distinguished consortium of high-value investors. The company is well on its way to commercializing its impactful technology,” added Anthony Viellevoije, Investment Director at PDENH.
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