Recently, Dalian Rongke Energy Storage Group Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Rongke Energy Storage") completed a Series B financing of over 1 billion yuan. This round of financing was led by Junlian Capital, with Dalian Jintou, the old shareholder Rongtuo Capital, and several other investors participating. This round of financing will be used for the company's capacity expansion and R&D investment.
Previously, China Zhongji Investment participated in Rongke Energy Storage's Series A financing.
Founded in 2008, Rongke Energy Storage, in cooperation with the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, established its subsidiary Dalian Rongke Energy Storage Technology Development Co., Ltd., specializing in the R&D, industrialization, and market application of vanadium flow battery technology. It is one of the earliest energy technology companies in China engaged in the R&D and manufacturing of vanadium flow batteries. Rongke Energy Storage has participated in the development of China's vanadium flow battery industry from scratch, obtaining approval to establish the National Key Laboratory of Energy Flow Battery Technology and the National-Local Jointly Built Engineering Research Center, and has received more than 10 scientific and technological achievements awards, including the second prize of the National Technological Invention Award. The company's headquarters, R&D, and production base are located in Dalian, Liaoning Province, and has invested in the construction of production bases in Sichuan, Anhui, Jiangsu, and other places.
Focusing on the vanadium flow battery industry chain, Rongke Energy Storage and its subsidiaries have made major breakthroughs in the core technology of all-vanadium flow batteries through more than ten years of accumulation and innovation, establishing a complete independent intellectual property rights system, and are the leading formulators of domestic and international standards in the flow battery field. The company has pioneered the domestic production of key materials such as vanadium flow battery electrolytes and bipolar plates, as well as the large-scale production of battery stacks and systems.
△Dalian Hengliu Energy Storage Power Station Phase I 100MW/400MWh Project
In May 2022, the Dalian Hengliu Energy Storage Power Station Phase I 100MW/400MWh project, which uses the vanadium flow battery energy storage system provided by Rongke Energy Storage, was officially connected to the grid. This is the largest vanadium flow battery energy storage peak-regulation power station in the world in terms of power and capacity, and it is also the first national-level large-scale chemical energy storage demonstration project approved by the National Energy Administration. In addition, the Liaoning Fakou Guodian Longyuan Wo niushi 5MW/10MWh energy storage power station, which Rongke Energy Storage participated in the construction of, has been operating stably for 10 years and is the longest-running megawatt-level vanadium flow battery system in the world.
Renewable energy power generation has intermittent and fluctuating characteristics and does not have self-balancing capabilities. Its large-scale access to the power grid requires the power system to have a certain ability to adapt and respond in order to guarantee the reliability of renewable energy supply. Energy storage technology can effectively solve problems in the operation safety of the power system, power and energy balance, and renewable energy consumption. It is a necessary technical support for the full development and utilization of renewable energy, especially when the proportion of wind and solar power generation exceeds 20%, and to cope with the large-scale intermittent new energy grid connection, the demand for medium- and long-term energy storage of 4 hours or more is rapidly increasing.
Vanadium flow batteries have characteristics such as fully independent and controllable resources and industrial chains, are highly compatible with large-scale renewable energy construction, and the unit cost decreases as the energy storage time increases. Before 2021, vanadium flow batteries were mainly used in small-scale and dispersed project construction. In 2022, the vanadium flow battery industry ushered in a boom, with hundreds of megawatt-level power stations put into operation, and downstream energy storage projects starting to bid for gigawatt-hour levels, driving market development; several research institutions predict that by 2030, the global flow battery energy storage market will reach tens of billions of yuan.
As one of the earliest companies to be involved in vanadium flow battery energy storage, Rongke Energy Storage is currently using its technology and business models as a breakthrough, and is the first to put many projects into operation in the fields of grid peak regulation, renewable energy grid connection, and industrial and commercial microgrids. It has rich engineering experience, and its products have been widely used in China and overseas regions such as the United States, Australia, and Germany. The company has delivered projects for state-owned enterprises such as State Power Investment Corporation, Datang, Huaneng, and China General Nuclear Power Group. The company insists on R&D investment and technological iteration and upgrading, creating product price advantages, and strengthening its core market competitiveness through the vanadium resource advantages achieved through cooperation with vanadium resource manufacturers.
After this round of financing, the company will continue to focus on the vanadium flow battery energy storage field, accelerate the expansion and upgrading of innovation platforms, R&D of new-generation energy storage products and key components, further expand in the global market and introduce high-end talents, and continuously consolidate and improve Rongke Energy Storage's technological leadership in the vanadium flow battery field, supporting the progress of China's and the world's carbon neutrality cause.
Liu Yanhui, founder of Rongke Energy Storage, said: "Currently, we are in a new era of global energy transformation, and carbon neutrality and carbon peaking are moving from global consensus to global action. Since its establishment, Rongke Energy Storage has focused on the national energy transformation strategy, adhered to the path of independent innovation, and has been deeply involved in the field of vanadium flow battery energy storage for 15 years, building a concentric industrial group covering vanadium flow battery technology innovation, key materials, and energy storage equipment manufacturing. Vanadium flow batteries have prominent advantages such as intrinsic safety, ultra-long life, and resource friendliness, and are an important technological choice for large-scale, medium- and long-term grid regulation resources. Currently, it is a crucial period for the development of the vanadium flow battery industry, and we hope to accelerate the commercialization process of vanadium flow battery energy storage through continuous technological innovation, capital assistance, and the synergistic integration of upstream and downstream industries."
