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Ascend Elements, a lithium-ion battery recycling and engineered materials company <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/battery-materials-company-ascend-elements-raises-162-million/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> it has raised $162 million in new equity investments. Major investors include Just Climate, Clearvision Ventures, and IRONGREY. The new funding will advance the construction of Ascend Elements’ Apex 1 facility in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, which will produce sustainable cathode precursor (pCAM) and is expected to open in early 2025.
Singapore-based renewable energy firm Vena Energy <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/vena-energy-secures-600-million-loan" target="_blank" rel="noopener">signed</a> a five-year sustainability-linked revolving credit facility worth JP¥87 billion (~$600 million) to accelerate its operations in the Asia-Pacific region. The company has a renewable energy capacity of over 3 GW and over 4 GW of additional capacity under construction or contract.
Antora Energy, a developer of thermal batteries, <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/thermal-battery-maker-antora-energy-raises-150-million/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">secured</a>  $150 million in Series B funding to help ramp up production. The round was led by Decarbonization Partners, a partnership between BlackRock and Temasek. The funding round also saw participation from Emerson Collective, GS Futures, The Nature Conservancy, and a subsidiary of NextEra Energy Resources alongside existing investors Trust Ventures, Lowercarbon Capital, Breakthrough Energy Ventures, BHP Ventures, Overture VC, and Grok Ventures.
Altilium, a battery materials recycling company, <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/battery-recycling-firm-altilium-secures-series-a-funding/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">secured</a> $9.43 million from SQM Lithium Ventures,  the corporate venture arm of the lithium business of Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile (SQM), bringing its total investment to $12 million. The investment completes Altilium’s Series A funding round. Altilium is expanding its operations in the U.K. and Europe with the help of the funding. SQM Lithium Ventures made an initial investment of $2.57 million in Altilium last year.
India-based shared electric two-wheeler company Yulu has <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/yulu-raises-1-6-billion-to-meet-demand" target="_blank" rel="noopener">raised</a> ₹1.6 billion ($19.25 million) in equity funding from existing investors Bajaj Auto and Magna International. The company will use these funds to scale up vehicles, operational locations, product and technology innovation, and strengthen market leadership to meet the user demand. Over the last year, the company said it has experienced a 5x growth in its revenue due to the increasing demand for shared mobility.
InSolare Energy, a Bengaluru-headquartered renewable developer and engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) company, has <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/renewable-epc-firm-insolare-energy-raises-%e2%82%b9660-million" target="_blank" rel="noopener">raised</a> ₹660 million (~$7.96 million) in a growth funding round. The funding was led by Negen Capital, with participation from Mukul Aggarwal, Anchorage Capital Fund, and Ankit Mittal – Khazana Tradelink. The company plans to utilize the funding to enhance its portfolio and EPC execution capabilities.
For reports and trackers on funding and M&amp;A transactions in solar, energy storage, and smart grid sectors, click <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/clean-energy-reports/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
Read last week&#8217;s funding <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/funding-and-ma-roundup-camus-energy-secures/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">roundup</a>.

Funding and M&A Roundup: Ascend Elements Raises $162 Million

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					</table>From: <a href="https://mercomcapital.com/funding-and-ma-roundup-ascend-elements-raises-162-million/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mercom Capital Group</a>
Ascend Elements, a lithium-ion battery recycling and engineered materials company <a href="https://mercomcapital.com/battery-materials-company-ascend-elements-raises-162-million/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> it has raised $162 million in new equity investments. Major investors include Just Climate, Clearvision Ventures, and IRONGREY. The new funding will advance the construction of Ascend Elements’ Apex 1 facility in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, which will produce sustainable cathode precursor (pCAM) and is expected to open in early 2025.
Singapore-based renewable energy firm Vena Energy <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/vena-energy-secures-600-million-loan" target="_blank" rel="noopener">signed</a> a five-year sustainability-linked revolving credit facility worth JP¥87 billion (~$600 million) to accelerate its operations in the Asia-Pacific region. The company has a renewable energy capacity of over 3 GW and over 4 GW of additional capacity under construction or contract.
Antora Energy, a developer of thermal batteries, <a href="https://mercomcapital.com/thermal-battery-maker-antora-energy-raises-150-million/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">secured</a>  $150 million in Series B funding to help ramp up production. The round was led by Decarbonization Partners, a partnership between BlackRock and Temasek. The funding round also saw participation from Emerson Collective, GS Futures, The Nature Conservancy, and a subsidiary of NextEra Energy Resources alongside existing investors Trust Ventures, Lowercarbon Capital, Breakthrough Energy Ventures, BHP Ventures, Overture VC, and Grok Ventures.
Altilium, a battery materials recycling company, <a href="https://mercomcapital.com/battery-recycling-firm-altilium-secures-series-a-funding/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">secured</a> $9.43 million from SQM Lithium Ventures,  the corporate venture arm of the lithium business of Sociedad Quimica y Minera de Chile (SQM), bringing its total investment to $12 million. The investment completes Altilium’s Series A funding round. Altilium is expanding its operations in the U.K. and Europe with the help of the funding. SQM Lithium Ventures made an initial investment of $2.57 million in Altilium last year.
India-based shared electric two-wheeler company Yulu has <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/yulu-raises-1-6-billion-to-meet-demand" target="_blank" rel="noopener">raised</a> ₹1.6 billion ($19.25 million) in equity funding from existing investors Bajaj Auto and Magna International. The company will use these funds to scale up vehicles, operational locations, product and technology innovation, and strengthen market leadership to meet the user demand. Over the last year, the company said it has experienced a 5x growth in its revenue due to the increasing demand for shared mobility.
InSolare Energy, a Bengaluru-headquartered renewable developer and engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) company, has <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/renewable-epc-firm-insolare-energy-raises-%e2%82%b9660-million" target="_blank" rel="noopener">raised</a> ₹660 million (~$7.96 million) in a growth funding round. The funding was led by Negen Capital, with participation from Mukul Aggarwal, Anchorage Capital Fund, and Ankit Mittal – Khazana Tradelink. The company plans to utilize the funding to enhance its portfolio and EPC execution capabilities.
For reports and trackers on funding and M&amp;A transactions in solar, energy storage, and smart grid sectors, click <a href="https://mercomcapital.com/clean-energy-reports/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
Read last week&#8217;s funding <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/funding-and-ma-roundup-camus-energy-secures-over-25-million" target="_blank" rel="noopener">roundup</a>.

<a href="https://ascendelements.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ascend Elements</a>, a lithium-ion battery recycling and engineered materials company announced it has raised $162 million in new equity investments. Major investors include Just Climate, Clearvision Ventures, and IRONGREY.
The new equity financing brings the company&#8217;s 12-month funding total to $704 million, including the $542 million funding round led by Decarbonization Partners, Temasek, and Qatar Investment Authority in September 2023.
The new funding will advance the construction of Ascend Elements&#8217; Apex 1 facility in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, which will produce sustainable cathode precursor (pCAM) and is expected to open in early 2025.
When complete, the 1-million-square-foot facility is expected to produce sustainable pCAM and CAM (cathode active materials) for up to 750,000 electric vehicles per year. The project is supported in part by the U.S. Department of Energy and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
&#8220;We are backing a technology that transforms spent lithium-ion batteries into critical materials used in the creation of new batteries. With its first pCAM facility in construction in the United States, Ascend Elements has the potential to unlock the supply of critical battery materials to accelerate the roll out of electric vehicles,&#8221; said Aruna Ramsamy, a Managing Director at Just Climate. &#8220;Ascend Elements&#8217; Hydro-to-Cathode® technology provides a sustainable option for production of critical battery materials, championing circularity in an industry that is poised to scale significantly. We&#8217;re looking forward to supporting Ascend Elements in its growth journey.&#8221;
According to Mercom&#8217;s Annual and Q4 2023 Funding and M&amp;A <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/product/annual-q4-2023-funding-ma-report-storage-grid/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Report </a>for Storage &amp; Smart Grid, Venture capital (VC/PE) funding in Energy Storage in 2023 was the highest ever recorded, increasing 59% year-over-year (YoY), with $9.2 billion in 86 deals compared to the $5.8 billion raised in 96 deals in 2022.
Last year, Mecaware, a battery recycling company, <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/battery-recycling-company-mecaware-raises/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">secured</a> €40 million (~$42 million) in funding for the recycling of battery production scrap (Gigafactories Scrap – ScrapCO2MET project). The project is expected to be operational in 2025. The project is expected to produce 50 tons of recycled metal per year, including lithium, nickel, cobalt, and manganese.

Battery Materials Company Ascend Elements Raises $162 Million

Ambient Photonics, a low-light solar photovoltaic cells company, <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/ambient-photonics-secures-30-million-series-a2-funding/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">secured</a> $30 million in a series A2 funding round. The round was led by Fine Structure Ventures, affiliated with the parent company of Fidelity Investments, and included new investors Helios Climate Ventures, Regeneration.VC, and Sustainable Future Ventures. Existing investors I Squared Capital, Ecosystem Integrity Fund, and Cthulhu Ventures also joined the round.
REC Limited, a public infrastructure finance company, <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/rec-1-25-billion-finance-power-infrastructure-logistics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">raised</a> $1.25 billion in August and September 2023 from a consortium of six banks and through a Foreign Currency Term Loan Agreement. The company raised $1.15 billion in two tranches from a consortium of six banks. The financing proceeds are expected to go towards funding power, infrastructure, and logistics sector projects as permitted under the External Commercial Borrowings guidelines of the Reserve Bank of India.
Zenobē, a global fleet electrification and battery storage solutions company, has <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/zenobe-secures-fleet-and-battery-storage-expansion" target="_blank" rel="noopener">secured</a> approximately £600 million (~$643.9 million) in funding from KKR, an international investment firm. The company also received an additional infusion of around £270 million (~$289 million) in equity, which has been contributed by Infracapital, an existing shareholder. Pending the fulfillment of standard closing requirements and regulatory authorizations, KKR and Infracapital are set to become co-majority stakeholders in Zenobē.
Ascend Elements, a lithium-ion battery recycling and engineered materials company has <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/ascend-elements-battery-materials-production-in-us" target="_blank" rel="noopener">raised</a> $542 million in new equity investments. The funding includes $460 million from its Series D investments and an additional $82 million from earlier this year. The Series D round was led by entities such as Decarbonization Partners, Temasek, and the Qatar Investment Authority. The newly acquired funds are expected to drive the construction of Ascend Elements’ Apex 1 facility in Hopkinsville, Kentucky.
florrent, a company developing high-energy density ultracapacitor technology, <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/ultracapacitor-startup-florrent-raises/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">secured</a> $2.1 million in a pre-seed round 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.
Ostrom, an energy management solution provider, <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/energy-management-startup-ostrom-gets-funding/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">raised</a> $8 million in funding in an investment round led by SE Ventures along with existing investors Union Square Ventures, Adjacent, J12, and Übermorgen. The funding round extends the company’s Series A funding to $18 million, bringing the company’s total funding to over $23 million. The additional funding will be used to further expand the company’s product offerings, most notably in home storage and solar solutions.
For reports and trackers on funding and M&amp;A transactions in solar, energy storage, and smart grid sectors, click <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/funding-and-ma-roundup-battery-developer-altris-raises-5-2-million/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
Read last week&#8217;s funding <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/funding-and-ma-roundup-solar-urbanvolt-raises-million/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">roundup</a>.

Funding and M&A Roundup: Ambient Photonics Secures $30 Million Series A2 Funding

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					</table>From: <a href="https://mercomcapital.com/funding-and-ma-roundup-ambient-photonics-secures-30-million-2/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mercom Capital Group</a>
Ambient Photonics, a low-light solar photovoltaic cells company, <a href="https://mercomcapital.com/ambient-photonics-secures-30-million-series-a2-funding/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">secured</a> $30 million in a series A2 funding round. The round was led by Fine Structure Ventures, affiliated with the parent company of Fidelity Investments, and included new investors Helios Climate Ventures, Regeneration.VC, and Sustainable Future Ventures. Existing investors I Squared Capital, Ecosystem Integrity Fund, and Cthulhu Ventures also joined the round.
REC Limited, a public infrastructure finance company, <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/rec-1-25-billion-finance-power-infrastructure-logistics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">raised</a> $1.25 billion in August and September 2023 from a consortium of six banks and through a Foreign Currency Term Loan Agreement. The company raised $1.15 billion in two tranches from a consortium of six banks. The financing proceeds are expected to go towards funding power, infrastructure, and logistics sector projects as permitted under the External Commercial Borrowings guidelines of the Reserve Bank of India.
Zenobē, a global fleet electrification and battery storage solutions company, has <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/zenobe-secures-fleet-and-battery-storage-expansion" target="_blank" rel="noopener">secured</a> approximately £600 million (~$643.9 million) in funding from KKR, an international investment firm. The company also received an additional infusion of around £270 million (~$289 million) in equity, which has been contributed by Infracapital, an existing shareholder. Pending the fulfillment of standard closing requirements and regulatory authorizations, KKR and Infracapital are set to become co-majority stakeholders in Zenobē.
Ascend Elements, a lithium-ion battery recycling and engineered materials company has <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/ascend-elements-battery-materials-production-in-us" target="_blank" rel="noopener">raised</a> $542 million in new equity investments. The funding includes $460 million from its Series D investments and an additional $82 million from earlier this year. The Series D round was led by entities such as Decarbonization Partners, Temasek, and the Qatar Investment Authority. The newly acquired funds are expected to drive the construction of Ascend Elements’ Apex 1 facility in Hopkinsville, Kentucky.
florrent, a company developing high-energy density ultracapacitor technology, <a href="https://mercomcapital.com/ultracapacitor-startup-florrent-raises/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">secured</a> $2.1 million in a pre-seed round 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.
Ostrom, an energy management solution provider, <a href="https://mercomcapital.com/energy-management-startup-ostrom-gets-funding/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">raised</a> $8 million in funding in an investment round led by SE Ventures along with existing investors Union Square Ventures, Adjacent, J12, and Übermorgen. The funding round extends the company’s Series A funding to $18 million, bringing the company’s total funding to over $23 million. The additional funding will be used to further expand the company’s product offerings, most notably in home storage and solar solutions.
For reports and trackers on funding and M&amp;A transactions in solar, energy storage, and smart grid sectors, click <a href="https://mercomcapital.com/funding-and-ma-roundup-battery-developer-altris-raises-5-2-million/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
Read last week&#8217;s funding <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/funding-and-ma-roundup-urbanvolt-raises-28-million" target="_blank" rel="noopener">roundup</a>.

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					</table><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/indias-open-access-installations-up-24-qoq-q2-2023" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Solar open access installations grew by 24% in the second quarter (Q2) of the calendar year 2023 compared to the previous quarter, adding 712 MW of capacity, according to the recently published Q2 2023 Mercom India Solar Open Access Market Report.</a> Throughout the quarter, module prices continued to decline, which reduced project costs and enhanced the attractiveness of power purchase agreements, thereby boosting the growth of solar open access capacity.
<a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/maharashtra-tenders-procuring-977-mw-solar-power" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MSEB Agro Solar Power, a wholly-owned subsidiary of MSEB Holding Company, has floated five tenders to procure 977.72 MW of solar power under the Mukhyamantri Saur Krushi Vahini Yojana in Maharashtra.</a> The tenders have been floated for 158.75 MW in the Kolhapur district, 186.044 MW in the Sangli district, 199.94 MW in the Satara district, 211.06 MW in the Yavatmal district, and 221.93 MW in the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar District. The last date to submit the bids for all the tenders is October 21, 2023. Bids will be opened on the same day.
<a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/thdc-issues-floating-solar-project-in-uttar-pradesh" target="_blank" rel="noopener">THDC India has invited bids for the project management and consultancy services for the development of an 11 MW floating solar power project at the Khurja Super thermal power project site at Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh.</a> The scope of work includes design review and validation of all the design calculations, documents, and drawings submitted by the contractors and other original equipment manufacturers to ensure specification &amp; statutory requirements. The last date to submit the bids is September 27, 2023. Bids will be opened the next day.
<a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/telangana-draft-intrastate-open-access-regulations" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Telangana State Electricity Regulatory Commission has issued the draft Intrastate Open Access Regulations 2023, allowing consumers with a contracted demand or sanctioned load of 100 kW or higher to avail of green energy open access.</a> The permissible sanctioned load can be through a single connection or via multiple connections aggregating 100 kW or more within the same electricity division of the distribution company. There will be no restriction on the quantity of power supplied to captive consumers availing power through green energy open access.
<a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/ascend-elements-battery-materials-production-in-us" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ascend Elements, a lithium-ion battery recycling and engineered materials company has raised $542 million in new equity investments.</a> The funding includes $460 million from its Series D investments and an additional $82 million from earlier this year. The Series D round was led by entities such as Decarbonization Partners, Temasek, and the Qatar Investment Authority. Goldman Sachs served as the sole placement agent for the Series D transaction.
<a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/uaes-masdar-to-develop-solar-park-for-dewa" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Dubai Electricity and Water Authority and Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company Masdar signed an agreement to construct and operate the 1.8 GW sixth phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park.</a> The project will cost up to AED5.51 billion (~$1.5 billion). Masdar was selected from a pool of 23 international bidders for the contract. Masdar’s proposed levelized cost of energy of $1.62/kWh for this phase is the lowest recorded for any of DEWA’s solar Independent Power Producer model projects to date.
<a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/global-fossil-fuel-subsidies-exacerbating-climate-crisis" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Putting the spotlight on the role of fossil fuel subsidies in exacerbating the climate crisis, a damning analysis by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said total fossil fuel subsidies</a> amounted to a whopping $7 trillion in 2022 or 7.1% of global GDP. By country, China contributed the most to total fossil fuel subsidies ($2.2 trillion) in 2022, followed by the United States ($760 billion), Russia ($420 billion), India ($350 billion), and the European Union ($310 billion). The report, IMF Fossil Fuel Subsidies Data: 2023 Update, makes a strong case for governments across the world to undertake fossil fuel price reform.

Daily News Wrap-Up: India Installs 712 MW of Solar Open Access Capacity in Q2

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					</table><a href="https://ascendelements.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ascend Elements</a>, a lithium-ion battery recycling and engineered materials company has raised $542 million in new equity investments. The funding includes $460 million from its Series D investments and an additional $82 million from earlier this year.
The Series D round was led by entities such as <a href="https://www.blackrock.com/corporate/sustainability/blackrock-temasek" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Decarbonization Partners</a>, <a href="https://www.temasek.com.sg/en/index" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Temasek</a>, and the <a href="https://www.qia.qa/en/Pages/default.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Qatar Investment Authority</a> (QIA).
<a href="https://www.goldmansachs.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Goldman Sachs</a> served as the sole placement agent for the Series D transaction.
Ascend Elements aims to produce sustainable, engineered battery materials on a commercial scale that will drive the electrification of transport and hasten the global transition to zero carbon emissions.
The newly acquired funds are expected to drive the construction of Ascend Elements&#8217; Apex 1 facility in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, slated to be North America&#8217;s first sustainable cathode precursor (pCAM) and cathode active material (CAM) manufacturing facility.
CAM and pCAM are engineered materials manufactured to precise microstructure specifications for electric vehicle batteries.
CEO Mike O&#8217;Kronley said, &#8220;I&#8217;d like to thank our new and existing partners for helping us deliver on our vision of producing sustainable, engineered battery materials at a commercial scale. Our sustainable lithium-ion battery materials will power EV batteries and accelerate the global transition to zero carbon emissions. Together, we are investing in North America&#8217;s critical EV battery infrastructure and bringing good manufacturing jobs back to the United States.&#8221;
The company claimed its patented Hydro-to-Cathode direct precursor synthesis process eliminates multiple intermediary steps in the traditional cathode manufacturing process, offering substantial economic and carbon reduction benefits.
Independent studies have shown that Ascend Elements&#8217; recycled battery materials perform as well as similar materials made from virgin sources, all while reducing carbon emissions by up to 93%, the company added.
Over the past year, Ascend Elements secured its first commercial-scale pCAM contract, commencing construction of its Apex 1 facility, and secured two U.S. Department of Energy (<a href="https://www.energy.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DOE</a>) grants totaling $480 million as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law in October 2022.
In June 2023, Ascend Elements signed a $1 billion contract to supply sustainable pCAM starting in Q4 2024, with options to expand the multi-year contract to a larger quantity valued at up to $5 billion.
Construction of the Apex 1 facility, spanning a 140-acre site in southwest Kentucky, began in October 2022. The company said once complete, the 1-million-square-foot facility will produce enough sustainable pCAM for 750,000 electric vehicles annually.
Last September, Ascend Elements <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/funding-and-ma-roundup-battery-recycling-company-ascend-elements" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> a strategic investment of $50 million from SK Ecoplant, the environmental unit of Korean conglomerate SK Inc.
In November, the company <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/funding-and-ma-roundup-ascend-elements-secures-300-million" target="_blank" rel="noopener">raised</a> $300 million in equity and debt financing. The funding round includes $200 million in Series C equity investments led by Fifth Wall Climate and joined by the SK Eco plant.

Ascend Elements Secures $542 Million for Battery Materials Production in US

<a href="https://ascendelements.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ascend Elements</a>, a provider of closed-loop battery materials solutions, raised $300 million in equity and debt financing. The funding round includes $200 million in Series C equity investments led by Fifth Wall Climate and joined by SK ecoplant. Other new investors include Oman Investment Authority, Lithium Americas Corporation, GLy Capital Management&#8217;s New Mobility Fund, Mirae Asset Capital &amp; LS, and Shinhan GIB. Many investors from previous funding rounds also participated in the latest round, including Hitachi Ventures, Jaguar Land Rover&#8217;s InMotion Ventures, TDK Ventures, Orbia Ventures, At One Ventures, TRUMPF Venture, and Doral Energy-Tech Ventures.
The company plans to use this funding to accelerate the commercialization of its Hydro-to-Cathode direct precursor synthesis process, which establishes a closed-loop EV battery materials supply chain in North America. Besides, the company is focused on creating a sustainable lithium-ion battery materials facility in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, with an estimated investment of up to $1 billion. The company anticipates equipping up to 250,000 electric vehicles with lithium-ion batteries made at its &#8220;Apex 1&#8221; manufacturing facility.
&#8220;Our investment partners understand the urgent need to produce sustainable lithium-ion battery materials. It&#8217;s not enough to simply recycle lithium-ion batteries and recover metals for the global commodity markets. Our patented, closed-loop process goes beyond simple battery recycling. Instead, we produce sustainable, high-performance cathode active materials that can go directly back into new EV batteries&#8221;, commented Ascend Elements CEO Mike O&#8217;Kronley.
SK ecoplant CEO Park Kyung-il said, &#8220;This investment continues our strategic partnership with Ascend Elements and lays the foundation for SK ecoplant as the 1st shareholder to dominate the global battery recycling industry&#8221;.
According to Mercom&#8217;s 9M And Q3 2022 Funding and M&amp;A <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/product/9m-q3-2022-funding-ma-report-for-storage-grid-efficiency/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Report</a> for Storage, Grid &amp; Efficiency. VC funding in Energy Storage in 9M 2022 fell by over 44%, with $4 billion in 73 deals compared to $7.2 billion in 60 deals in 9M 2021.

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