Japanese start-up PowerX has raised ¥4.1bn ($32m) to fund its project to transport offshore wind energy by ship in containerised batteries.
NYK Line and Imabari Shipbuilding, which are involved in the project, have also joined the first round of fund raising.
The Series A financing round, co-led by Spiral Capital and Nippon Gas, involved banks MUFG and Mizuho Capital, trading house Mitsui & Co and others.
The funding will be used to build a battery assembly facility and research and development into energy storage.
The PowerX project involves constructing the energy transfer vessels — known as Power ARKs — which will transport wind energy to shore in batteries.
The batteries will have multiple applications, such as providing mobile charging units for electrical vehicles.
Imabari is involved in the construction of a prototype vessel, together with NYK Line and classification societies ClassNK and DNV.
The first ship is scheduled to be completed in 2025.
“We look forward to working with like-minded companies to take on the challenge of decarbonisation, including the joint development of the ... Power ARK with PowerX,” said Imabari chief executive Yukito Higaki.
Tomoyuki Koyama, NYK senior managing executive officer, said: “PowerX’s large-scale storage batteries can be utilised in an expansive scope of applications in the field of renewable energy, and its business acceleration is highly anticipated.
“With our offshore knowledge and technology cultivated in the shipping industry, NYK will partner up with PowerX to develop energy storage solutions for maritime applications and to develop the power transfer vessel as an effort to contribute to expanding the adoption of renewable energy.”
