Lightshift Energy, previously known as Delorean Power, has raised $100 million from Greenbacker Capital Management, a New York-headquartered firm with offices in Maine, Vermont and Colorado. Of the funding, $20 million was in the form of growth equity and $80 million toward capital expenditure and operations. In 2022, Lightshift raised $20 million from Greenbacker.
Founded in 2019 by energy transition veterans Michael Herbert and Rory Jones, Lightshift develops energy storage projects, ranging in size up to 250 megawatts, across North America. It has over 20 contracted battery projects, and a pipeline of over 4,000 MW.
Value Proposition
Herbert and Jones serve as Lightshift’s co-managing partners. Herbert was previously energy storage policy coordinator at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and a board member of the Virginia Solar Energy Development and Energy Storage Authority. Jones oversaw energy projects at the International Finance Corporation.
“This growth milestone could not be more timely as we’re witnessing an unprecedented confluence of supply and demand challenges across the U.S. power grid. Tackling those challenges with energy storage is our core business,” Jones, who earned an MS from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, said in a LinkedIn post.
Lightshift’s energy storage solutions address rising electricity demand and a growing appetite for renewable energy, both of which strain legacy energy infrastructure. Its storage projects help utilities cut costs and manage growth. For example, its 10.5 MW battery facility in Danville, Va., will save the city over $40 million, Lightshift said.
“Utility-scale grid storage is revolutionizing electricity management, and Lightshift’s battery solutions provide both energy reliability and cost stability,” said Dan De Boer, Greenbacker’s head of infrastructure. “As rural and urban utilities continue to seek cost-efficient, sustainable options that increase their communities’ energy resilience, Lightshift is a proven partner to meet those needs.”
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The deal with Lightshift “reaffirms our company’s commitment to expediting the integration of sustainable energy across the United States,” said Benjamin Baker, head of growth equity strategy at Greenbacker, which focuses on clean energy infrastructure.
Greenbacker’s other recent investments were in Revolv, Telyon, Nexus Program Management Group and Peak Power. In 2023, it raised $148 million in debt from RBC Capital Markets.
