Sorin Grama : Promethean Power Systems
LAUNCH Energy
Challenge: LAUNCH Energy
Promethean Power Systems
A rural refrigeration system for commercial cold-storage applications in off-grid and partially electrified areas of developing countries.
A thermal energy battery that enables commercial refrigeration systems to become economically viable in parts of the world where the power grid is unreliable.
Energy shortages threaten the growth of emerging economies where businesses often receive only five to six hours of electricity per day. For example, in India's massive dairy industry, the vast majority of milk spoils within just a few hours because of inadequate access to refrigeration technology.
THE INNOVATION
In developing markets, Promethean's modular thermal energy battery can be used as a backup to the unreliable power grid, while in the rest of the world it can be used to reduce the energy consumption of power-hungry refrigeration appliances. In the case of India, the use of the modular battery provides easy access to energy at the source of milk's production, reducing spoilage and waste.
"In India, we charge the battery using the five or six hours of available electricity, usually at night, and discharge it when the grid is off in order to cool and preserve raw milk." – Sorin Grama, CEO of Promethean Power Systems
Promethean envisions developing a battery that can be used for any cooling application. Customers will be able to connect multiple batteries together to store energy as needed.
"Our vision is to make the thermal energy battery a technology platform allowing third-party manufacturers to develop attachments such as vaccine or beverage coolers. We'll publish a design guideline and a consortium of manufacturers will adopt a standard battery specification." – Sorin Grama, CEO of Promethean Power Systems
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