Moment Energy raises $40M to meet ‘endless energy demand’ with EV batteries

Moment Energy CEO Edward Chiang believes that the demand for energy in North America is limitless – and that his startup has a solution.

The company, which has headquarters in Canada and the United States, is taking a new approach to recycling electric vehicle batteries, Chiang told TechCrunch. The company’s approach is unique, he said, because of its dual focus on security and flexibility.

Investors apparently agree. On Tuesday, Moment Energy announced that it has raised $40 million in Series B funding, bringing its total funding to over $100 million. The round was led by Canadian VC firm Evok Innovations, with additional funding from grocery fund W23, joining existing investors such as Amazon’s Climate Pledge Fund and In-Q-Tel, a CIA-backed VC firm.

In Chiang’s view, the power grid in North America is in a losing race to keep up with this energy demand, driven by extreme weather, the rise of electric vehicles, and the data center boom. So far, he says, most Chinese companies have filled this demand – which amounts to 72% of the global market, according to BNEF – adding a national security wrinkle to the picture.

Moment Energy is tackling this by taking battery packs from electric vehicles, ripping off automaker battery management systems, and writing its own pack management software. It then packages the battery modules into large-scale grid-scale storage solutions that can handle a wide range of battery chemistries, allowing customers to benefit from future advances in technology while also reducing downtime if a module fails.

Interestingly, Chiang said, Moment Energy does all this with UL Certification, making it the first company to replace batteries with the safety agency’s seal of approval.

Chiang said that some companies that work in repurchasing EV batteries for long-term storage often claim to test their products against UL certification standards, but in reality they do not receive certification, which requires the use of specific components.

“What is another second life [battery] Companies are now trying to say, let’s just want to make the UL certificate for the second life easier, because it is impossible to get a UL certificate, as it is,” he said. “But at the moment, we say that is not true. We got it.”

UL certification may sound boring, but Chiang said it can make a difference not only when it comes to safety, but also how these energy storage products are insured.

He said (without naming them) that some energy storage companies will leave the automaker’s battery management system smart for recycled batteries, and actually trick the pack into thinking it’s still on track to induce the right amount of waste.

This can make these storage solutions less secure or more expensive to insure, Chiang said. He pointed out that Liberty Mutual participated in Moment Energy’s Series B as proof that his company’s solution is more than enough.

“Maybe as developers, or as consumers, we think that’s interesting,” he said. “Frankly, the fire inspectors don’t think that’s interesting. The automakers don’t think that’s interesting. You can imagine if – I really hope this doesn’t happen – but if the battery catches fire, the fire inspector will say, ‘Oh, hey, there’s a Tesla battery management system here, or there’s a Nissan battery management system here,’ and any automaker is not going to be approved for safety systems.'”

Chiang’s confidence seems to come from many places. Despite its small size – Chiang said Moment Energy has about 72 employees – the company has signed supply agreements with Mercedes-Benz and Nissan. It received a $20 million loan from the Department of Energy. It is also building a gigawatt-scale plant in Austin, Texas.

Moment also has a growing book of diverse clients, from utilities, to industrial companies, and – yes – data centers.

But Chiang said he also thinks a lot of Moment Energy’s approach comes from the fact that it’s a Canadian company at heart, removed from some of the fundamental ideas of Silicon Valley.

While Chiang said that “all the data center companies have been reaching out to us,” he emphasized that his company did not want to fall into the trap of raising money against promises that could not be fulfilled.

“What we’ve been thinking about all along is staying focused on what we know, what we’re building, and serving real customers, versus trying to sign five- or 10-year deals just to raise money. And unfortunately, we’re seeing that a lot of Bay Area startups aren’t trying to deliver a product, but trying to raise the next round.

“But we said, I think because we have roots in Canada, a lot of Canadian companies are focused on building a tangible business and a real, profitable, and growing business, and we’re looking at the truth when it comes to shipping.”