Not content with making some of the fastest electric cars in the world, Croatia’s Rimac wants to create solutions that make clean energy more accessible.
Best known for its electric supercars, Croatia’s Rimac this week announced its entry into the stationary energy storage systems (ESS) market with a new brand, Rimac Energy.
The move marks a major milestone for the company, which makes some of the fastest – and most expensive – supercars in the world, as it expands beyond electric vehicle (EV) technology and introduces innovative stationary energy storage systems.
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The firm says that these stationary solutions are essential in realising the full potential of renewable power generation and driving the decarbonisation of energy networks.
Rimac was founded in 2009 by Mate Rimac, and last year raised 500 million euros from investors including Goldman Sachs, Porsche and a technology fund advised by Japan’s SoftBank.
The funding round valued Rimac at over two billion euros.
“There is an urgent need for clean energy infrastructure to support the integration of renewable energy sources into the grid by providing storage and balancing capabilities,” says Rimac. “Given our head start in EV technology and dedication to sustainability, this path feels like a seamless progression for us.
“Our team is truly excited about creating solutions that make clean energy more accessible, as we strive to decrease our dependence on fossil fuels and foster a greener future.”
Pushing the limits
The Rimac Energy team has been steadily built as a specialised team within Rimac Technology over the last 18 months and now consists of 60 dedicated employees – all of whom currently work on its first generation of stationary ESS and pilot applications with select customers.
Leveraging Rimac’s renowned expertise in EV technology, Rimac Energy says that it applies the same engineering philosophy and design know-how to stationary energy storage applications.
As a result, Rimac Energy claims to have created a novel battery architecture that reduces efficiency losses by up to 50 per cent whilst decreasing the system footprint by up to 40 per cent compared to current state-of-the-art solutions.
Additional technological benefits include improved cycle life, built-in redundancy for increased availability, as well as competitive material and installation cost.
“At Rimac we have always been driven by innovation and a passion for pushing the limits of what is possible in the automotive industry,” adds Rimac Energy’s director, Wasim Sarwar.
“However, we recognise the importance of stationary storage solutions to power our planet sustainably. Given our track record in innovative battery technology, we believe we will play a vital role in building Europe’s future energy ecosystems, elevating it on the global stage.”
Made in Croatia
Rimac Energy’s unique technology is being developed and manufactured at Rimac’s facilities on the outskirts of Zagreb, Croatia and will be revealed later this year.
Initially, Rimac Energy will provide solutions for large commercial, industrial, and utility-scale applications, with battery-buffered solutions for fast and mega-watt charging already underway.
The company currently has several customer projects in discussion, including a pilot with a leading renewable energy company to provide battery storage solutions for their solar and wind power plants.
These pilot systems are expected to be produced by the end of this year, and commissioned in 2024. Mass manufacturing is set to start in 2025, with manufacturing capacities continuously scaling up into the double-digit GWh-scale.
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