Solar battery network startup RedEarth Energy Storage has raised AU$12 million (~$8.82 million) in a pre-IPO round led by Ord Minnett Private Opportunities. The company plans to use the funds to accelerate its local manufacturing, sales, marketing efforts, and specific research and development to finalize its electricity monetization technologies ahead of its planned Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) listing in 2022.

Other investors include Perennial Value and Thorney Investment Group.

“We are committed to our vision of continuing to empower our customers with new possibilities of not only saving money by switching to solar electricity but making money. This is unique in an industry dominated by partial foreign offerings,” said Charles Walker, Co-Founder, and CEO, RedEarth.

RedEarth builds solar battery systems for residential, commercial, and industrial customers. The company has developed its integrated technology stack and has established a network of 1,000 systems since 2013.  It has raised funds to continue its fleet expansion. Its systems are modular and scalable to serve customers’ evolving needs as more things become electric.

RedEarth has posted 60% quarter-on-quarter growth in revenue for the last 13 quarters, with the expansion of distributed energy storage adoption a very significant tailwind as it looks to an IPO next year.

“The way the world generates, distributes, and uses electricity is undergoing fundamental change right now. RedEarth is at the forefront of that change with our fully vertically integrated offerings for both on-grid and off-grid customers.  We plan to make significant reinvestments in additional research and development as RedEarth grows, to ensure the company’s products remain at the forefront of Australia’s growing sustainable energy needs,” said Chris Winter, Co-Founder and CTO, RedEarth.

According to Mercom’s 1H and Q2 2021 Funding and M&A Report for Storage, Grid & Efficiency, battery storage companies raised $9.6 billion in corporate funding in the first half of 2021. The report stated that funding levels had improved every quarter since Q1 2020. Global VC funding in battery storage companies stood at $4.4 billion in 33 deals in 1H 2021, a 720% rise compared to $536 million in 14 deals in the same period last year. A total of 106 VC investors participated in battery storage funding in 1H 2021.