florrent, a company developing high-energy density ultracapacitor technology, secured $2.1 million in a pre-seed round, which was led by MassVentures, with participation from MassMutual Catalyst Fund, AIN Ventures, Tale Venture Partners, NextFab Ventures, Boston Impact Initiative, and others.
The company plans to use this investment to validate performance improvement in commercial form factor cylindrical cells and scale material production capacity.
Contoured Carbon, is florrent’s pure-carbon-based electrode energy storage technology for improving ultracapacitor energy density. The company claims that unlike other EDL Capacitor materials that come from synthetic resins, coal, or coconut husk, florrent’s material is made from hemp fibers that are grown in the U.S., integrating BIPOC farmers into the supply chain. The renewable biomass source is then transformed into contoured carbon through a special activation process.
“The electrification of industries and the proliferation of renewable power generation is creating a need for a continuum of energy storage technologies to enable the global economy to achieve our ambitious climate goals. Ultracapacitors play an important role in fast-acting stabilization and high-power moments on that continuum,” said Jose LaSalle, Co-founder and CEO of florrent.
“We are thrilled to welcome florrent into the MassVentures portfolio. The company has an exceptional team and their technology is making all the right advances. They hit our investment sweet spot and we are very excited to be a part of their journey,” said Priya Yadav, Vice President, Investments at MassVentures.
The demand for sub-second and low-minute response in energy storage is surging, with applications spanning industrial processes, transportation, and grid stability expected to grow the global supercapacitor market into a $15 billion industry by 2030, according to the Department of Energy. florrent’s high energy density ultracapacitor can help meet this demand by overcoming traditional bottlenecks in the renewable energy sector, according to the company.
VC Funding activity for the energy storage sector was up 27% in 1H 2023, with $3.8 billion in 43 deals compared to $3 billion in 48 deals in 1H 2022, according to Mercom’s 1H And Q2 2023 Funding and M&A Report for Storage & Smart Grid.
