$4.1 million award granted to Heliogen for R&D into pathway for commercial implementation of solar thermal calciner
PASADENA, Calif., October 24, 2022 — Heliogen, Inc. (Heliogen) (NYSE: HLGN), a renewable energy technology company utilizing concentrated sunlight and thermal storage to decarbonize industry, today announced that it has been selected to receive a $4,100,000 award from the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) to accelerate the large-scale development and deployment of concentrating solar-thermal power (CSP) technology for industrial decarbonization and electrical power generation and storage. This project will aim to demonstrate a first-of-its-kind concentrating solar-thermal power (CSP) process for decarbonizing the heating of limestone to 950°C, which could reduce the carbon emissions associated with cement manufacturing.
Heliogen, in collaboration with the Colorado School of Mines, the University of Michigan, Martin Marietta and CTP Advanced Composites, aims to demonstrate a solar-driven calciner utilizing the Heliogen concentrated solar thermal system to heat up the feedstock and drive endothermic chemical decarbonation up to 950oC. This demonstration aims to provide a foundation for developing a commercial solar calcination system enabling CO2 capture and heat recovery, including solar calciner design and modeling tools, prototype fabrications and testing, and technoeconomic analysis for future scale-up in industrial applications. When applied to a multi-acre field, Heliogen’s AI/computer-vision based control system can achieve the high temperatures required for solar thermal calcination research.
Energy-intensive cement production contributes approximately 7% of global CO2 emissions, while over 80% of the energy used in cement production is consumed by calcination. The receiver-reactor and associated technologies developed for this project will aim to eliminate the majority of CO2 emissions to significantly decarbonize cement production.
“We are very pleased to have been selected for this award, which will accelerate our R&D efforts and enable us to further demonstrate the impact of Heliogen’s CSP technology,” said Paul Gauche, Executive Vice President for Engineering, Heliogen, Inc. “This project is an important step in our mission to enable the decarbonization of heavy industries like cement production, essential to meeting global greenhouse gas emissions targets.”
Heliogen was selected as a part of the SETO Fiscal Year 2022 CSP Research, Development, and Demonstration funding program, an effort to lower the cost of CSP technologies and create new market opportunities for the industry, with the goal of enabling substantial deployment of CSP to decarbonize the electricity grid and energy system. Heliogen’s solar-driven calciner design is one of several projects that will enable concentrating solar-thermal technologies with thermal energy storage to be integrated with high-temperature industrial processes to produce economically important products, like cement, fuels, and other chemicals.
About Heliogen
Heliogen is a renewable energy technology company focused on decarbonizing industry and empowering a sustainable civilization. The company’s concentrating solar energy and thermal storage systems aim to deliver carbon-free heat, steam, power, or green hydrogen at scale to support round-the-clock industrial operations. Powered by AI, computer vision and robotics, Heliogen is focused on providing robust clean energy solutions that accelerate the transition to renewable energy, without compromising reliability, availability, or cost. For more information about Heliogen, please visit heliogen.com.
About the Solar Energy Technologies Office
The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office supports research and development across the solar energy spectrum to drive innovation, lower costs, and support an equitable transition to a decarbonized economy. Learn more at energy.gov/solar-office.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Statements that are not historical in nature, including the words “anticipate,” “expect,” “suggests,” “plan,” “believe,” “intend,” “estimates,” “targets,” “projects,” “should,” “could,” “would,” “may,” “will,” “forecast” and other similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the development of a commercial solar-driven calciner system and expected impacts to carbon emissions associated with cement manufacturing. Forward-looking statements are predictions, projections and other statements about future events that are based on current expectations and assumptions and, as a result, are subject to risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause actual future events to differ materially from the forward-looking statements in this press release, including but not limited to: (i) our financial and business performance, including risk of uncertainty in our financial projections and business metrics and any underlying assumptions thereunder; (ii) our ability to execute our business model, including market acceptance of our planned products and services and achieving sufficient production volumes at acceptable quality levels and prices; (iii) our ability to access sources of capital to finance operations, growth and future capital requirements; (iv) our ability to maintain and enhance our products and brand, and to attract and retain customers; (v) our ability to scale in a cost effective manner; (vi) changes in applicable laws or regulations; (vii) the ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the potential impacts of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on our business; (viii) developments and projections relating to our competitors and industry; (ix) our ability to access sources of capital to finance operations, growth and future capital requirements; and (x) our ability to protect our intellectual property. You should carefully consider the foregoing factors and the other risks and uncertainties disclosed in the “Risk Factors” section in Part I, Item 1A in our Annual Report on Form 10-K/A for the annual period ended December 31, 2021 and other documents filed by Heliogen from time to time with the SEC. These filings identify and address other important risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events and results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and Heliogen assumes no obligation and does not intend to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.
Heliogen Media Contact:
Cory Ziskind
ICR, Inc.
Heliogen Investor Contact:
Louis Baltimore
