Bramble Energy, a London-based cleantech startup, has just secured €41.7 million to fuel further expansion of its game-changing capabilities that unlock the adoption of hydrogen at scale – supporting the wider mission of achieving net zero. This investment has been led by HydrogenOne Capital Growth plc and is supported by the existing institutional investors (BGF, IP Group, Parkwalk Advisors and the UCL Technology Fund).
Hydrogen fuel cell technologies are currently somewhat limited because of cost, inflexibility, manufacturing complexity and scaling issues. Bramble Energy is changing the game with its revolutionary tech, leveraging an existing global manufacturing base. Utilising the printed circuit board (PCB) industry, Bramble Energy can turn around bespoke fuel cell stacks from design concepts to physical units within days, saving up to a year in development time compared to other manufacturers.
Founded in 2016 by Dr. Tom Mason, in the research labs at Imperial College of London and University College of London, Bramble Energy has been growing rapidly since its previous funding round in 2020 – going from a team of 3 to 35. The cleantech disruptor is on a mission to help deliver a cleaner and more sustainable world with its hydrogen fuel cell solution.
For decades, the energy sector has functioned in one way and one way only – by the use of fossil fuels. But the damage caused is taking its toll on our planet. Realisation is spreading that society can no longer continue as it has. Globally, there is a growing consciousness that more sustainable solutions must be found to aid the energy transition. The net zero goal of 2050 is fast approaching, and embracing innovation is the only way to make the ambition the new normal. The energy sector has a big role to play in educating the masses on how energy works, the processes involved to make energy happen and where the fuel used to power items comes from.
In 2020, the UK government released its 10 point plan for a green industrial revolution with hydrogen cited a number of times as a pillar of building back better to decarbonise. The availability of hydrogen as a fuel, with the environmental advantage of a zero-emission system, gives fuel cells the potential to be a long-lasting renewable energy solution. Fuel cells can be scaled to demand and have applications ranging from stationary, primary power sources providing stable and high-power density off-grid electricity, to portable applications such as drivetrain integration for automotive power and even as small as mobile phone power.
EO and Co-Founder of Bramble Energy, Dr Tom Mason, comments: “There is no bigger challenge that humanity faces than the climate crisis and our team’s core purpose is to help the world achieve net zero. Hydrogen fuel cells have long been viewed as a ‘future’ solution however deployment of this clean energy technology has been hindered by complex manufacturing and the high costs associated with this.”
The fresh funding will be used to fuel the roll out of the startup’s portable power products globally, as well as continue to develop its liquid-cooled fuel cell stack capabilities. Through this phase, Bramble Energy will deploy its disruptive fuel cell stack technology in a variety of strategic commercial applications to enable decarbonisation across a number of industries and sectors. In doing so, Bramble Energy will move another step closer to becoming the go-to name in scalable fuel cell technology and at the same time become a leading UK-based net zero success story.
The additional funding will also help Bramble Energy grow its UK-based team to over 100 employees and provide a springboard for the deployment of zero emission projects with commercial partners and ultimately achieve its goal of becoming the largest fuel cell supplier in the world.
Dr Tom Mason continued: “Bramble Energy’s goals are ambitious, and we are aiming high with our purpose. I believe the potential for our technology is limitless and with that in mind we aim to decarbonise as many sectors as possible on a global scale. As net zero goals near, there are only going to be more and more opportunities that present themselves for our technology to develop and work to aid the clean energy transition. The target is for Bramble to become the go-to name in affordable, scalable fuel cell solutions.”
