How Eos Is Powering the Future from Pittsburgh
April 24, 2024
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The Pittsburgh region has long been recognized as an innovation hub throughout Pennsylvania and across America. With a storied history of industrial excellence, the region has now ascended as a leader in climate tech. Pittsburgh’s distinctive commitment to nurturing cutting-edge sustainable solutions has magnetized leaders within the industry.
Therefore, it comes as no surprise that Eos Energy Enterprises, Inc. chose Pittsburgh last year to launch its $500 million expansion project. Titled Project AMAZE (American Made Zinc Energy), the battery maker’s project is expected to drive forward the national and global clean energy sector and spur economic development in Pittsburgh’s Mon Valley communities.
Eos is a leading provider of safe and sustainable zinc-powered long-duration stationary energy storage systems. In fact, it was the first Title XVII non-lithium battery manufacturer to receive a conditional commitment for a loan from the U.S. Department of Energy. Upon undergoing due diligence by the federal government, and meeting the loan guarantee’s conditions, the company is expected to receive a $398.6 million loan for Project AMAZE upon closing and meeting certain conditions precedent.
This transformative conditional loan speaks to Eos’ leadership in clean energy storage technology. Once finalized, this loan is expected to fund 80% of Project AMAZE and help Eos scale its clean-energy storage capacity to eight gigawatt-hours annually — in addition to growing Eos’ American workforce by hundreds by 2026. With the anticipation of hundreds of green-collar jobs being added at Eos’s operations in the Pittsburgh region, the company will be able to produce battery modules within minutes.
Project AMAZE: A Long-Duration Solution for the Long Term
The next-gen battery technology powering Project AMAZE is the Eos Z3™ energy storage system. Eos developed this product as an alternative to lead-acid, sodium-sulfur, vanadium redox and lithium-ion batteries for stationary battery storage applications. A domestically made, long-duration battery, the Eos Z3™ is a zinc-powered energy storage system that is inherently non-flammable and fully recyclable at end of life. This system can store and dispatch energy on the electric grid from renewable energy sources such as wind and solar.
The Eos Z3™ Cube is powered by Eos’s Znyth™ technology battery energy storage system (BESS). This technology, 16 years in the making, uses a zinc battery in its manufacturing and is designed to meet cost-effective, long-duration, grid-scale stationary energy storage needs on a mass-production scale.
Tax credits written into the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) have incentivized implementation of long-duration energy storage solutions, thus increasing the demand for innovative products. A expansion of Eos’s presence in the Mon Valley, via Project AMAZE, would significantly help to address growing market demand.
In addition to growing Eos’s state-of-the-art manufacturing facility and the Mon Valley workforce, this expansion would efficiently scale the domestic production of low-cost, long-duration energy storage. This production is critical to delivering climate-conscious battery systems at this crucial moment in the global energy transition.
A recent partnership between Eos and Wisconsin-based Acro Automation Systems will further enhance the facility by creating high-output manufacturing lines, with the first line landing in their manufacturing facility located in Turtle Creek.
Leading the Charge from Pittsburgh
Based in Edison, New Jersey and led by Chief Executive Officer, Joe Mastrangelo, Eos Energy Enterprises, Inc. has established its manufacturing base in Pittsburgh. The region has a rich manufacturing legacy that traces back to the founding of Westinghouse.
A testament to the Pittsburgh region’s commitment to energy transition, the city hosted the Global Clean Energy Action Forum in the fall of 2022. The region’s energy innovation bent combined with its industrial heritage, skilled workforce, and dedication to innovating sustainable climate tech, provide a prime environment for Eos in their part in ushering in an energy transition.
A commitment to community development is another touchpoint for both the region and the company. Eos is investing in training and upskilling initiatives for the local workforce. Their investment will enhance the already strong STEM talent pool from Pittsburgh’s globally renowned universities, like the University of Pittsburgh and Community College of Allegheny County.
Additional partnerships with Mon Metro Chamber of Commerce and Partner4Work will support the development of Pittsburgh’s current and future workforce by providing cutting-edge opportunities in energy to those who were once part of the area’s rich manufacturing history.
How Local Investments Are Changing the World
As one of few battery storage enterprises to receive funding commitments from the federal government, Eos is paving the way toward a sustainable future. Battery manufacturing in the U.S.A. is a key priority of President Joe Biden’s administration, and Eos is playing a critical role in bringing this next-gen battery technology to utilities across the nation.
Project AMAZE and Eos’s revolutionary Z3™ Cube epitomize the kinds of innovations and investments that are transforming the Pittsburgh region and the U.S.’s ability to compete globally. Project AMAZE, specifically, is expected to significantly expand the U.S. supply chain.
Based on Baker Tilly US’ review, a top 10 accounting and advisory firm, Eos recently determined that the Eos Z3™ product is made up of over 90% ‘domestic content,’ with plans to reach 100%. By integrating Eos battery storage systems into solar or wind projects, Eos customers could be potentially eligible for tax credits amounting to as much as 70% of the costs of an energy storage coupled project. This specific credit does fall under the IRA’s 10% domestic content bonus initiative, designed to award efforts revolutionizing how the world stores power.
For such large-scale, energy innovation progress to be happening in Pittsburgh is a testament to the forward-thinking spirit of the region.
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