Shell-backed energy storage startup MGA Thermal powers up with $5.7 million investment

New South Wales-based clean energy startup MGA Thermal has raised $5.7 million, bringing its latest funding round to around $14 million as it prepares to enter the next testing stage for its thermal energy storage system.

Existing investors Main Sequence and Melt Ventures have once again backed the company, participating in the funding round alongside new investor JEKARA.

Founded in 2019 by Dr Erich Kisi and Dr Alexander Post, MGA Thermal has now raised a total of $28.8 million in funding and grants for its long-duration thermal energy storage tech, which it says has key applications in the mining, mineral processes and manufacturing industries.

Part of that funding pool has come from industry giant Shell, which invested $560,000 in seed funding in MGA Thermal as part of its GameChanger startup accelerator fund in early 2023.

The startup’s ultimate goal is to abate 30 million tonnes of CO2 by 2030, which would be the equivalent of more than 23 years of commercial airplane flights between Sydney to Los Angeles.

MGA Thermal has been working towards demonstrating its tech and in late 2023, started the commissioning process for a demonstration unit of its Miscibility Gaps Alloy (MGA) Thermal Blocks and Thermal Energy Storage (TES) system.

However, the startup identified areas it needed to improve during this process and paused operations to address them.

“This was a valuable learning opportunity that will ultimately strengthen our TES system development. We’ve gained insights that will help accelerate our progress as we prepare to resume commissioning of our demonstration unit,” said MGA Thermal CEO Mark Croudace in a statement.

He said the startup’s mission of “revolutionising the renewable energy landscape has never been stronger” and it remains on track to reach its next milestone of establishing commercial-scale operations.

The startup said the last funding will support its next phase of testing to reinstate and prove the scale of its closed-loop TES system, which will produce high-pressure, high-temperature clean steam to meet growing industrial demand.

“We have continued working with numerous industrial partners and clients over the last six months which cannot solely rely on solar, wind and renewable energy sources to meet their decarbonisation goals,” said Croudace in the statement.

“We’re excited to realise the next phase of our partnerships through the implementation of an on-site MGA Thermal TES system to supply ongoing clean-steam and energy storage capabilities.”