Microsoft Bets On This EV Battery Startup As Backbone Of Energy Transition

  • Group14 Technologies, a global manufacturer and supplier of advanced silicon battery technology, raised $214 million in additional financing from a consortium including Microsoft Corp’s MSFT Climate Innovation FundLightrock Climate Impact FundMoore Strategic VenturesOman Investment Authority, and Molicel. 
  • The latest financing brings Group14’s Series C round to $614 million.
  • Batteries are becoming the backbone of the clean energy transition,” said Brandon Middaugh, Director of Microsoft’s Climate Innovation Fund. 
  • The battery startup, valued at over $3 billion, won a $100 million grant from the U.S. Energy Department through the 2021 infrastructure bill, the Wall Street Journal reports.
  • It raised $400 million earlier this year from investors including Porsche Automobile Holding SE POAHYRiverstone Holdings Ltd REVSF, and a joint venture between BlackRock, Inc BLK and Singapore state-owned investor Temasek Holdings Ltd.
  • Group 14 says its silicon anode material is more efficient than existing graphite technology, potentially fueling more powerful batteries for automakers like Porsche.
  • Group14 says its existing commercial factory in Washington led ahead of Sila Nanotechnologies IncEnovix Corp ENVX, and Amprius Technologies, Inc AMPX.
  • Group14 plans to use the new funding to accelerate the development of a larger manufacturing facility in central Washington that will produce material for batteries capable of powering at least 100,000 electric cars. 
  • Group14’s material can easily replace or work alongside graphite, allowing it to be integrated into the existing battery supply chain, which should help the company grow more quickly, Middaugh said.
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