Climate tech

Q4 202330.11.2023

Energy Storage

Picture of Shubham Jaipuria

Shubham Jaipuria

at Sifted

Renewable energy can’t always give us the right amount of juice when we need it: the sun doesn’t always shine, nor does the wind blow, when we want it to. Enter energy storage. Projected investment in new batteries in Europe is set to reach €30 billion by 2030, fuelling a 20x increase in grid-scale storage capacity by 2031, as the region prepares for a greener future.

At present, many storage solutions rely on lithium, which experienced a 7% price surge in 2022 — its first increase in 12 years. Startups are exploring more cost-effective alternatives, including sodium power, hydropower, and sand-based batteries. But what about scaling them? Lithium — albeit an expensive metal — still offers the best economies of scale, putting the onus on alternatives (and the startups behind them) to find ways to make them significantly cheaper.

20 most promising early-stage startups

Sifted score
7.02
-
ZE Energy
Strong investor(s)
Hiring
- Year founded
  2018
- HQ
  Paris, France
- Latest round
  Series A
  €40m / Nov 2021
- Total funding
  €44m
View company profile
Sifted score
6.81
-
Basquevolt
Hiring
- Year founded
  2021
- HQ
  Vitoria, Spain
- Latest round
  Seed
  €10m / Jun 2022
- Total funding
  €10m
View company profile
Sifted score
6.56
-
Nanom (formerly Greenvolt)
Strong investor(s)
Serial founder(s)
- Year founded
  2017
- HQ
  Reykjavík, Iceland
- Latest round
  Seed
  €2.7m / Apr 2021
- Total funding
  €3.5m
View company profile
Sifted score
6.5
-
EH Group
- Year founded
  2017
- HQ
  Nyon, Switzerland
- Latest round
  Seed
  €4.2m / Jan 2022
- Total funding
  €5.7m
View company profile
Sifted score
6.48
-
LEVISTOR
Serial founder(s)
Hiring
- Year founded
  2021
- HQ
  London, United Kingdom
- Latest round
  Grant
  €2.5m / Oct 2022
- Total funding
  €3.4m
View company profile

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