News Summary:
- Lineage Logistics, the world’s largest temperature-controlled industrial REIT and logistics solutions provider, will deploy up to 150 Mainspring Linear Generators and explore the use of 100% green fuels to power the fuel-flexible Mainspring products.
- Global private equity investor Lightrock leads the Series E round, joined by Khosla Ventures, Bill Gates, Fine Structure Ventures, Lineage Ventures and others
MENLO PARK, Calif., May 24, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Onsite power generation provider Mainspring Energy Inc. today announced that Lineage Logistics, the world’s largest temperature-controlled industrial REIT and logistics solutions provider, has signed an agreement to deploy up to 150 Mainspring Linear Generators across its network of distribution facilities in the United States. The two companies also will explore the deployment of Mainspring units outside the United States and the use of 100% green fuels to power the fuel-flexible Mainspring products.
Mainspring simultaneously announced that it has closed more than $150 million in the first stage of its Series E funding, led by global growth equity investor Lightrock and joined by others including Khosla Ventures, Bill Gates, Fine Structure Ventures, the private equity firm affiliated with the parent company of Fidelity Investments, Princeville Capital, and Lineage Ventures. Mainspring will use the funds to develop new linear generator models and to accelerate the commercial, industrial, datacenter and utility adoption of Mainspring Linear Generators producing zero-carbon electricity.
The announcement follows Lineage’s November 2021 deployment of two Mainspring Linear Generators in tandem with 3.3 MW of solar arrays to achieve its first cold-storage facility to produce 100% of its energy onsite. With the new agreement, Lineage commits to a complete evaluation in 2022 for the next 50 sites for linear generator deployment. Lineage has a global network of over 400 strategically located facilities totaling over 2.5 billion cubic feet of capacity spanning 20 countries across North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific.
“Mainspring’s technology will help support our move to net zero carbon energy,” said Chris Thurston, head of renewable energy projects for Lineage. “Mainspring generators improve energy independence and buffer our growing use of solar power, while offering the potential future use of zero carbon fuels like green hydrogen and others. This plays an important role in meeting our Lineage Climate Pledge commitment to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2040.”
Mainspring Chief Commercial Officer Jim Dawe said, “Lineage is a global business leader and role model actively demonstrating how resilient energy and sustainability work together to drive growth and profitability. They have long been an innovator in technology adoption and smart, data-driven decision-making. We are proud to have them as our partner in expanding linear generator technology into new geographies and demonstrating our proven capability to run zero-carbon fuels.”
The Mainspring product’s fuel-flexibility, combined with its dispatchability – the ability to ramp up and down quickly and complement the inherent variability of solar and wind power – along with easy siting and permitting, gives commercial, industrial, and utility customers alike unprecedented adaptability in making investments and moving towards decarbonizing their operations. The products can run indefinitely when solar and wind power are in flux, low, or unavailable. In a zero-carbon power scenario, the 100% green fuels such as hydrogen are produced using solar or wind power and stored in tanks or pipelines until they are needed for power generation by linear generators whenever and wherever needed to ensure low-cost, resilient generation at the grid level.
The product is modular, scalable, and easily permitted, allowing it to be used for a wide range of applications. Commercial and industrial uses include firming rooftop solar, providing prime and/or backup power, managing demand spikes, lowering and controlling electricity costs, and serving as the backbone of local microgrids. Applications for utility and other grid-side customers include grid-edge resilience, displacing diesel backup generators and peaker plants, EV fleet charging, and avoiding expensive transmission and distribution infrastructure costs. Clients benefit from outstanding sustainability (e.g. essentially zero NOx), high efficiency, low total cost of ownership, and siting and operational flexibility.
Lightrock Partner Kevin Bone said, “Mainspring’s radical flexibility in clean power generation — the ability to operate multiple fuel types, to turn on and off rapidly, to be placed anywhere, easily and affordably — has the potential to demonstrably speed the world’s move to zero-carbon electricity. Lightrock invests in companies that can deliver significant, measurable climate impact, and Mainspring fits ideally into our portfolio, which also includes innovators in fields such as hydrogen electrolysis and biogas conversion.”
“Mainspring is proud to contribute innovations in power generation to accelerate the move to the zero-carbon future,” said Mainspring CEO and Founder Shannon Miller. “We’ve achieved this together with pioneering customers like Lineage and the backing of some of the world’s top venture, strategic, and financial investors, all of whom are deeply dedicated to addressing climate change in meaningful ways. Our Series E adds yet more outstanding investors and enables us to even more rapidly expand our product offerings and scale our ongoing deployments to customers.”
About Lineage Logistics
Lineage Logistics is the world’s largest temperature-controlled industrial REIT and logistics solutions provider. It has a global network of over 400 strategically located facilities totaling over 2 billion cubic feet of capacity, which spans 20 countries across North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific. Lineage’s industry-leading expertise in end-to-end logistical solutions, its unrivaled real estate network and the development and deployment of innovative technology help increase distribution efficiency, advance sustainability, minimize supply chain waste, and, most importantly, as a Visionary Partner of Feeding America, help feed the world. In recognition of the company’s leading innovations and sustainability initiatives, Lineage was a 2022 U.S. Best Managed Company, No. 3 in the 2022 CNBC Disruptor 50 list, No. 17 in the 2021 CNBC Disruptor 50 list, the No 1. Data Science company, and 23rd overall, on Fast Company’s 2019 list of The World’s Most Innovative Companies, in addition to being included on Fortune’s Change The World list in 2020. (www.lineagelogistics.com)
About Mainspring Energy
Driven by its vision of the affordable, reliable, zero carbon grid of the future, Mainspring is delivering a breakthrough new category of power generation — the linear generator — to leading commercial, industrial, and utility customers. to increase their energy resilience, generate cost savings, and meet their sustainability and climate goals. Customers include Fortune 500 companies like Kroger and Lineage Logistics, as well as utilities like PG&E, Florida Power and Light, and others. Based in Menlo Park, Calif., Mainspring is backed by top-tier investors. For more information on the company, technology, and products, please visit www.mainspringenergy.com
SOURCE Mainspring
