Australian energy company 1414 Degrees is going public with its silicon energy storage technology after almost a decade and $15 million spent on its development.
The South Australian based company has lodged a prospectus for an Initial Public Offering (IPO) with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).
1414 Degrees proposes to raise a minimum of $30 million – and up to $50 million – at 35 cents per share.
“This day has been a long time coming for 1414 Degrees and its foundation investors,” Executive Chairman, Dr Kevin Moriarty, said.
“In December 2016, we became an unlisted public company, and it was a critical pillar of our pre-IPO planning that we first get our products operating in commercial sites in order to establish a strong value proposition for current and prospective investors. We now have agreements to do that.
“The IPO will enable us to commission three of our four key product lines in operating commercial industries and build and test a 1/15th scale cell of the TESS-GRID before proceeding with construction of a 200MWh module.
“The 200MWh TESS-GRID module will be built at a site with network connection to solar or wind generation. We have been working to identify a suitable location adjacent to the 100MW government peaking plant at the Adelaide Desalination Plant, and other sites have also been presented for consideration.
“A single TESS-GRID module will have a storage capacity of 200MWh – equivalent to approximately 400 tonnes of silicon – capable of charging at up to 40MW. It could supply up to 10MW base load electricity, plus heat over at least eight hours.”
In 2017, 1414 Degrees received a Renewable Technology Fund (RTF) grant from the Government of South Australia for a collaboration with SA Water, which will integrate energy generation from biogas waste with storage at the Glenelg Wastewater Treatment Plant.
“In addition to the biogas project, our team has – for some time – been undertaking due diligence associated with two projects on Australia’s eastern seaboard, and these were each signed and announced in recent weeks,” Dr Moriarty said.
“With three key projects now in place, our Board and leadership team felt the time was right to take the company public in order to enlarge and diversify our equity base, and position 1414 Degrees for substantial growth in the short to medium term.”
However, Dr Moriarty confirmed more than 8000 investors had pre-registered their interest, and 1414 Degrees had reserved $20 million for those investors to “make room for all”.
He said the SA Water contract, along with the two deals signed by the company during April 2018 – with New South Wales operations Pepe’s Ducks and Austcor Packaging – demonstrated the growth potential of the business and underscored the varied application of its technology.
“Our technology has the potential to revolutionise the approach of Australian and international industry to energy storage and heat generation,” Dr Moriarty said.
“There is a huge market for our products – everything from grid scale deployment to use in factories and district heating projects.”
“The IPO has come at a vital time in the evolution of 1414 Degrees. There is a sizeable gap in the market and our products have the potential to fill it. If we raise the capital needed to ensure we are first to market, we expect there to be a very strong demand.”
Dr Moriarty will be presenting at the Australian Energy Storage Conference and Exhibition, running from 23-24 May in Adelaide. For more information visit australianenergystorage.com.
