Zinc Air prepares to launch storage batteries

A Kalispell company that has developed a one-of-a-kind grid energy storage system expects to ship its first battery system by year’s end.

Zinc Air Inc. has been fine-tuning its Zinc Redox grid storage technology over the past two years and recently moved its research and development center and corporate offices to a facility on U.S. 2 West north of Glacier Park International Airport.

“No one’s ever taken this technology to market,” said David Wilkins, president and chief executive officer of Zinc Air. “While cost is a critical component, a storage technology must also be efficient, safe and environmentally friendly to achieve widespread adoption.”

Over the last century, one of the biggest challenges in the power industry has been the inability to store electricity, he said. This is especially critical in the rapidly emerging renewable energy sector that includes wind and solar energy.

Renewable technologies rely on natural forces that are not stable or predictable, Wilkins said, adding that often their energy is produced at a time when there is not demand, such as the middle of the night. Therefore, a great need exists to store that energy and transmit it at more peak demand times.

Electricity storage is projected to be a $200 billion market opportunity in the United States, Wilkins noted.

Currently, Zinc Air’s biggest grid-scale storage competitor is “pumped hydro,” which pumps water up a mountain while the cost of electricity is low and releases the stored water through turbines during periods of high electrical demand. If pumped hydropower isn’t available, utility companies need to rely on expensive “peaker plants,” as a backup power source, Wilkins explained.

“The need is there for batteries to provide an inventory of electricity to complete the smart-grid vision,” he said. “Delivering a grid storage battery in the one megawatt-plus range at two to three times lower pricing than our current competition will enable rapid industry adoption.”

Using flow battery technology, the Zinc Redox focuses on grid storage applications including peak shifting and integration of renewable energy sources such as wind and solar. The goal is to match demand with supply and reduce variability.

The advantage of Zinc Redox is that it uses raw materials from Montana and the United States that are readily available and abundant, Wilkins said.

Energy independence and sustainability are key benefits for Zinc Air, Wilkins added, especially in a global arena in which supply chains could be cut off for political reasons. Most batteries are made with precious metals in short supply and that are hard to reach. Most lithium deposits, for example, are outside the United States, forcing components of such batteries to be imported.

Initially Zinc Air contracted with Semitool in Kalispell to build the first prototype, but when Semitool was sold to Applied Materials last year, Zinc Air opted to continue the battery development on its own, said Zinc Air Senior Vice President and Chief Technical Officer Kevin Witt, who formerly worked at Semitool as director of disruptive technology.

Zinc Air now is testing its Alpha 1 and Alpha 2 cells and expects to install its first field test unit later this year. The privately funded company had been contracting with MSE Technology Applications in Butte for initial testing until it was ready to run with its own research and development facility.

The company employs 15 people, most of whom are engineers and scientists with an electro-chemistry background, and is ramping up to hire more professionals with that background, Wilkins said.

As for its first customers, Zinc Air is “looking for early adopters, those who see the value in this technology,” he said.