As countries reaffirm their climate goals, Hydrostor gains global traction
This week, the European Commission released an anticipated first look into a long set of proposals, which will bring the continent closer to its European Green Deal objective of climate neutrality by 2050. This new set of proposals, titled Fit for 55, is nothing short of ambitious. It aims to reduce emissions by at least 55% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels. If approved, Fit for 55 would set forth the roadmap for the EU to achieve climate targets and commitments made under the Paris Agreement.
Although ambitious, this aggressive climate policy package is necessary to ensure a future world we can all live in. Without additional measures, the European Union (EU), the world’s third largest emitter of greenhouse gas emissions, would only achieve a 60% reduction in emissions by 2050 - far from the needed targets.
By issuing these proposals, the European Commission wants to turn the 2020s into a transformative decade, signalling that our global climate change crisis is an ever present urgent problem, not a hypothetical future risk.
At Amplify Capital, we realized early on that ambitious climate targets would kickstart a booming demand for new solutions, including renewable energy and energy storage solutions. This thesis is what led us to invest, in late 2016, in Hydrostor, a unique, compressed air energy storage solution. Their technology delivers low-cost long-duration bulk energy storage, flexibly addressing electricity system needs and supporting the transition to a carbon-free and renewable energy grid.
We invested pre-revenue because of our belief in the long term vision and clear market opportunities for large scale energy storage. Five years later, the vision is starting to become reality as both the public and private sectors are actively seeking market ready solutions to champion the shift towards carbon neutrality. Hydrostor has become a preferred choice with validated technology and a fully operational facility in Canada that has exceeded performance targets. They’ve garnered global attention and now have a 200MW project under development in New South Wales, Australia, and two project sites in California representing 1GW in the bidding process for development. In doing so, Hydrostor is establishing itself as a key stakeholder in future proofing New South Wales and California’s paths to decarbonization, creating green jobs and advancing sustainability strategic plans along the way.
Since investing in Hydrostor, Amplify Capital has made two more investments in cleantech companies - Sylvatex and Alt Tex - tackling the climate crisis from different angles. Our thesis continues to focus on technologies that enable large-emitting industries to reduce their carbon footprint by 2030 and beyond.
While the Fit for 55 proposals are up for a tough negotiation among its 27 countries, it is undoubtedly a call to other high-polluting global leaders to take action. With the EU as the first mover, the question now is “who will follow”.