Estonian energy storage company Skeleton Technologies will invest 220 million Euros to build a new factory in Markranstädt, Germany, in partnership with Siemens. The new factory will be the company's second manufacturing plant and it will be the largest and most modern supercapacitor factory in the world.
So what are supercapacitors? Like batteries, supercapacitors are used to store and release energy, but at smaller quantities and faster speeds. Skeleton Technologies uses aluminium and a carbon-based material it produces in Estonia to make its supercapacitors, recouping energy produced naturally.
Skeleton’s supercapacitors are used in transport, grid, industrial and automotive applications and, according to the company, “offer the highest power and energy density on the market, almost instant charging and discharging and allow to reduce CO2 emissions and save energy”. “Supercapacitors are a key element in dramatically reducing emissions in the power generation, transportation and industrial sectors,” Taavi Madiberk, the CEO and co-founder of Skeleton Technologies, said in a statement.
Skeleton Technologies was created in Estonia in 2009, by Estonian entrepreneurs Taavi Madiberk and Oliver Ahlberg who studied at the University of Tartu. In 2017 the company received a €15 million investment from the European Investment Bank.
By 2025 the ultracapacitor market is estimated to be worth €7.5 billion. More information can be found on the Skeleton Technologies website.