AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Infinitum, creator of the sustainable air-core motor, today announced $185 million in Series E funding led by Just Climate with participation from Galvanize Climate Solutions and NGP. Existing investors including Alliance Resource Partners (NASDAQ: ARLP), Rockwell Automation (NYSE: ROK), Riverstone Holdings, Chevron Technology Ventures, Cottonwood Technology Fund and Ajax Strategies also participated in this round, bringing total funding to-date to $350 million. Funds will be used to expand the company and increase production to meet customer demand and drive decarbonization in the industrial sector, one of the largest and hardest-to-abate emitters of greenhouse gases.
According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), motors are the largest single end-user of energy, consuming 53% of electricity globally. In the US industrial sector, motors alone consume nearly 70% of total electricity used to power numerous core industrial applications, such as compressors, pumps, fans and material processing and handling equipment.
However, the majority of motors today waste energy because they operate at a single speed. Since thirty percent of the growth in global electricity demand by 2040 is expected to come from industrial motors as the sector expands and shifts to electrification, according to Deloitte, adoption of higher-efficiency, variable speed motors in industrial applications is therefore critical for reducing energy and emissions.
Infinitum’s advanced motors meet this challenge through a built-in variable frequency drive (VFD) that reduces energy usage by running the motor at lower speeds when possible. The motor is 50 percent smaller and lighter, uses 66 percent less copper and no iron in the stator, and consumes 10 percent less energy1 than traditional motors. Infinitum’s air-core motors, so named because the stator does not have an iron core, replace the copper-wound iron core found in traditional motors with a lightweight printed circuit board stator that is 10x more reliable. Manufacturing and servicing Infinitum motors is less carbon intensive than traditional motors and the motor’s modular design allows components to be reused multiple times.
“We believe replacing millions of outdated, single-speed motors with higher-efficiency, variable speed motors is key to helping the industrial sector meet sustainability objectives and solving the net zero challenge,” said Benoit Grobon, a director at Just Climate. “Infinitum’s motors are a disruptive, high-impact solution that can be produced at scale and easily implemented to benefit industry through reduced energy consumption and waste. We’re pleased to welcome Infinitum’s team to our portfolio of climate-focused companies and be a part of their growth journey.”
The implementation of advanced motor technology in the US industrial and commercial sectors has the potential to save 127 terawatt-hours per year (TWh/yr), translating into cost savings of $14.7 billion and reductions of 90.2 MMT of CO2, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. This is equivalent to the annual electricity use of all households in California and North Carolina combined.
To accelerate the adoption of high-efficiency, variable speed motors across the global industrial sector, Rockwell Automation and Infinitum are jointly developing a motor system that is compatible with Rockwell’s market-leading industrial automation solutions. The resulting motor and low-voltage drive solution will be distributed through Rockwell, expanding the opportunity for global industrial sector clients to easily deploy a sustainable motor system and cut energy consumption, operating costs and material waste.
“We recognize the vast opportunity that Infinitum’s motors can have across numerous applications to make the industrial sector more productive and sustainable,” said Barry Elliot, Vice President & General Manager, Power Control, Rockwell Automation. “The ease and benefits offered by Infinitum’s combined motor and VFD system can serve as a catalyst for industrial companies to easily transition to using VFDs and save on energy costs. We’re excited to expand our partnership with Infinitum and look forward to the impact it will have on decarbonizing the sector.”
“Partnering with Just Climate, Galvanize Climate Solutions, NGP, Alliance Resource Partners, Rockwell Automation and our existing investors in this investment round is an exciting milestone, and will allow us to make a bigger impact,” said Ben Schuler, founder and CEO, Infinitum. “Our talented team has worked to deliver an award-winning motor that can power the world’s industrial applications with less energy, material and waste to make a positive impact on our planet today and serve generations of the future.”
To learn more about Infinitum, visit www.goinfinitum.com.
Advisors
Evercore acted as the exclusive placement agent for Infinitum in connection with this capital raise.
Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati provided legal counsel to Infinitum for this transaction.
About Rockwell Automation
Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE: ROK), is a global leader in industrial automation and digital transformation. We connect the imaginations of people with the potential of technology to expand what is humanly possible, making the world more productive and more sustainable. Headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Rockwell Automation employs approximately 28,000 problem solvers dedicated to our customers in more than 100 countries. To learn more about how we are bringing the Connected Enterprise® to life across industrial enterprises, visit www.rockwellautomation.com.
About Just Climate
Just Climate is an investment business dedicated to climate-led investing to address the net-zero challenge at scale. Our ambition is to identify and invest in high-impact solutions for climate mitigation, as well as to catalyse and multiply capital to scale them. We seek to harness the power of institutional capital to accelerate, and to set a new standard for, climate-led investing.
Just Climate LLP is an appointed representative of Generation Investment Management LLP, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. For further information, please visit www.justclimate.com or ‘Just Climate’ on LinkedIn.
About Infinitum
Infinitum has raised the bar for a new generation of motor that is better for the planet and people. The company’s patented air core motors offer superior performance in half the weight and size, at a fraction of the carbon footprint of traditional motors, making them pound for pound the most efficient in the world. Infinitum motors open up sustainable design possibilities for the machines we rely on to be smaller, lighter and quieter, improving our quality of life while also saving energy and reducing waste. Based in Austin, Texas, Infinitum is led by a team of industry experts and pioneers. To learn more, visit goinfinitum.com.
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1Energy savings depends on several factors and may range from a few percentage points when compared to other premium efficiency motors to upwards of 65% when compared to older generation motors with no variable frequency drive or control systems. |
