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The oil capital’s green battery technology acts as a magnet for wealthy investors.
STAVANGER (Nettavisen Økonomi 🙂 Rich investors may appear to have “fomo” (fear of missing something) when the entrepreneurial company Beyonder continues to grow.
Online newspaper Økonomi visited the company on Forus in August and, in the weeks and months that followed, lured leading politicians, investors and curious journalists through the doors.
Read more about the company here: Norwegian Innovative Technology: Develops Batteries from Sawdust
On Monday, the company announced that some of the richest people in Norway have contributed fresh money to the company:
- Erik must it has invested capital through the companies Arendal Fossekompani and Must Invest. The 77-year-old is considered the 29th richest in Norway, with an estimated fortune of NKr 7.5 billion in 2020.
- Billionaire Kjell Christian Ulrichsen He is also one of the main owners of Arendal Fossekompani. The same is true Morten Sigval Bergesen, He has about 4 billion and is the 70th richest in Norway.
- Yuhong J. Hermansen It has long been one of the richest in Rogaland and has a fortune of around 4.1 billion crowns, making it the 67th richest in Norway. Your DSD Invest is also on the newest investor list.
- The oil giant Equinor He is also investing in the high-potential startup and has contributed to the recent fundraiser.
In total, Beyonder raised NOK 125 million this fall. 75 percent of the money has been taken from the new investors. 25 percent has been taken from existing investors, where series founder Jakob Hatteland, investor Tore Gjedebo Y The Austigard family He is on the owner’s side along with dozens of other people.
– It is clear that when you get such a body of investors, especially with the big four who are new to the list of investors, you can not be more than proud and very satisfied. This brings us to a new division, CEO and founder Svein Kvernstuen tells Nettavisen Økonomi.
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Very ambitious plans
The technology company Beyonder, which was established by Kvernstuen in 2016, will conquer one of the world’s fastest growing industries – batteries for green development.
For Beyonder, however, it is not African minerals, but Norwegian sawdust that are among the main ingredients when the batteries are to be produced. Norwegian spruce and pine wood chips, residual waste from the wood industry, are up there with the Sandnes company.
This is Beyonder technology
- Norwegian Beyonder has developed since 2016 a battery solution that combines the properties of lithium-ion batteries and supercapacitors. Its excellent qualities are high power, long life and fast charging.
- Beyonder’s proprietary battery technology comes from both the forest and the “sand”: The technology company produces carbon from forest debris, which is used in the positive electrode of the capacitor. The negative electrode uses silicon, which is found in large quantities in sand.
- Beyonder’s battery cells can be fully charged in less than five minutes, a process that can be repeated more than 100,000 times. Technology can help reduce emissions from both the maritime, oil and gas industry, and from road and sea transportation.
Following the latest round of funding, the company will open a battery center with research and development, laboratories and production testing. The automated pilot line will be established in 2021. The company will open its first commercial production facility at a suitable location in Rogaland in 2024.
– What is left before starting in 2024?
– We must industrialize production and demonstrate to customers that technology works. We have received a fantastic response from the market so far and there is a lot of interest, but now we must bring with us even more necessary experience that can get the company ready, says Kvernstuen and continues:
– We need more and adequate capital to expand and build a factory. Now is the time to complete the prototype and establish a pilot.
The 48-year-old sent the first advances for a new round of financing in September and targeted some big investors. Kvernstuen says there have been a few months of a lot of hard work.
– Despite a lot of attention, investors haven’t exactly thrown money at us. We’ve had to work to get it, and it’s very nice now that we have the money.
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Investors brag about the company
The global market for stationary storage batteries is expected to grow 122-fold by 2040, and a large part of the increased demand could come from heavy-duty ferries, large machines, and industry. Investors who have faith in the technology include Equinor, which predicts that energy storage will play an important role in ecological change.
“We are looking forward to including Beyonder in our portfolio because we believe the company has the potential to increase our presence and knowledge throughout the energy storage segment,” Gareth Burns of Equinor Ventures said in a statement.
Morten Henriksen, Executive Vice President of Arendal Fossekompani, is also very satisfied with the investment.
– For an industrial investor who focuses on green technology, Beyonder is a particularly interesting company with its technology that enables green change. By contributing to the further development of battery technology, we strengthen our position in renewable energy and materials technology, says Henriksen.
Yuhong Hermansen’s DSD already has advanced battery technology and large-scale electric transportation via the MF Ampere electric ferry.
– We look forward to being part of Beyonder’s journey towards realizing the world’s first truly sustainable battery cell technology, and we believe this technology has the potential to become a new zero-emission solution that everyone can benefit from, says Chief Investment Officer Kjartan Melberg at DSD.
Also Read: Global Industrial Giant Kicks Off Pioneering Norwegian Battery Technology Collaboration
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