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Newcastle-based energy technology startup MGA Thermal has reached a major milestone on its pathway to commercialisation after proving its world-first commercial Electro-Thermal Energy Storage (ETES) system’s capability to dispatch industrial-grade steam from renewable energy.
The company, which is backed by a host of climate tech investors including the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA), says its groundbreaking ETES technology significantly outperforms conventional sensible heat thermal storage, offering a viable pathway to 24/7 renewable heat for industries and effectively replacing reliance on carbon-intensive fossil fuels.
“The successful operation of this world-first system is a game-changer, proving that consistent, industrial-grade clean steam is not a future aspiration, but a reality today,” says Erich Kisi, executive chair, chief scientist and co-founder at MGA Thermal.
“Our unique ETES solution efficiently captures and stores surplus renewable energy in a specially designed material, releasing it as high-temperature steam on demand.
“Our systems react in milliseconds, seamlessly absorbing and deploying energy and therefore at a large scale can participate in grid and energy market stabilisation. This marks a pivotal moment in the journey to decarbonise industries with high and continuous heat requirements.”
MGA Thermal’s says its fully operational demonstration plant unveiled today has produced steam output that solves the “impossible problem” of 24/7 renewable energy for industrial applications.
The technology, which MGA Thermal has been developing for the past decade, comprises a series of shoebox-sized thermal energy storage blocks which are designed specifically for energy storage, and which offer higher density than traditional energy storing materials.
The miscibility gap alloy (MGA) blocks, which are stackable and can be amassed to scale up to a required energy supply, are created using metal alloy particles that are dispersed throughout a matrix material.
The blocks absorb and store thermal energy made from renewably generated electricity, surplus energy from the grid or behind-the-meter solar farms, enabling long-term energy storage across solar and wind.
MGA Thermal’s Tomago demonstration plant, which is just 12 metres long, three metres high and four metres tall, stores 5 MWh of energy with a 500kW thermal dispatch power, which the company says provides continuous superheated steam for a full 24 hours - or enough energy to power more than 270 homes for the same duration.
The company says the production of steam via renewables is critical for the path to net zero as steam underpins 44 per cent of Australia’s energy consumption in heavy industries alone, with half dedicated to heat generation.
MGA Thermal claims its newly commissioned demonstration plant “shatters" the paradigm for industrial energy production by converting intermittent renewable electricity into reliably stored thermal energy, ready for on-demand steam generation.
“Our now-operational demonstration plant isn’t just a concept – it’s a commercially viable solution ready for deployment,” says Mark Croudace, CEO at MGA Thermal.
“As we gear up for full-scale commercialisation, our focus is on partnering with forward-thinking industries, both locally and globally, eager to embrace a sustainable future.
“The potential for significant emissions reduction is immense, and we are on track to abate 30 million tonnes of CO2 by 2030.”
MGA Thermal says the success of its demonstration plant is a “significant leap forward” for both the company and for Australia’s clean energy leadership by establishing a new benchmark for renewable heat solutions.
“This is the missing piece of the puzzle for heavy industry decarbonisation,” says Croudace.
“We’ve cracked the challenge of delivering continuous steam from intermittent renewable sources, making it both technically and commercially compelling.”
The success of the pilot plant comes on the heels of MGA Thermal raising $14.15 million in a pre-Series B round at the end of last year, which was backed by climate tech angel investor Electrifi Ventures in partnership with Climate Salad.
The most recent round brings total capital raised by MGA Thermal since inception to $42.95 million and it followed a $5.7 million raise this time last year to prove the industrial capabilities of the company’s thermal energy storage system.
That round was backed by existing investors Main Sequence and Melt Ventures, while introducing clean-tech partnership JEKARA as a new investor.
MGA Thermal’s technology even caught the eye of energy giant Shell, which in 2023 awarded the company a US$400,000 grant through its GameChanger program for energy startups.
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