Singapore state investment company Temasek Holdings and US asset management giant BlackRock Inc have led a US$150 million funding round for Antora Energy, a US-based manufacturer of thermal batteries.
Other investors who participated include impact investing firm Emerson Collective, venture firms GS Futures and Overture VC, and environmental non-profit The Nature Conservancy, all from the US, and Australian venture firms BHP Ventures and Grok Ventures, Antora says in a statement on February 23.
The firm says the funding will enable it to ramp up production of thermal batteries.
Temasek and BlackRock led the fundraising through Decarbonsation Partners, which they jointly formed in 2021 to invest in late stage venture capital and early growth private equity investment funds focusing on decarbonisation solutions.
Meghan Sharp, the partnership’s global head and chief investment officer, describes Antora as “the clear leader in decarbonising industrial heat” which she says accounts for 15% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
“This capital enables Antora to scale up its manufacturing and commercial deployments, meeting the significant customer demand for its zero-emissions heat and power products in the US and around the world,” she says.
Antora is “thrilled” to team up with the partnership and “all of our exceptional investors to supercharge” the firm, according to Andrew Ponec, its co-founder and chief executive officer.
“This financing enables us to build and deploy our thermal batteries even faster, moving full speed ahead to decarbonise industry in the US and around the world,” he says.
Temasek had a net portfolio value of S$403 billion ($297 billion) as of March 31, 2023. New York-based BlackRock had $9.1 trillion of assets under management as of end-2023.
