Meine Electric, APAC’s first innovator in iron-air long-duration energy storage (LDES), has raised $750,000 (approximately ₹6.7 crore) in pre-seed funding from a group of marquee investors including Antler, Rebalance, Venture Catalysts, gradCapital, and AIC-AU Incubation Foundation, along with prominent angel investors such as Alexander Hogeveen Rutter.
The capital will be used to accelerate Meine Electric’s transition from laboratory-scale prototypes to pilot-ready iron-air battery systems, supporting the company’s commercialization roadmap.
Founded in 2023 by Priyansh Mohan, a metal-air technologist and Anna University graduate, and Stuti Kakkar, a former BCG consultant and economist, Meine Electric has developed a proprietary iron-air battery technology capable of delivering long-duration energy storage at a levelised cost below $0.05/kWh (around ₹4/kWh).
Iron-air batteries use abundant raw materials such as iron, air, and water, operating through a reversible rusting process that enables electricity generation during discharge and regeneration of metallic iron during charging. Unlike conventional solutions, Meine Electric’s technology supports faster charge and discharge cycles, making it suitable for solar-heavy grids.
While lithium-ion batteries are typically limited to short-duration storage, Meine Electric’s iron-air systems are designed to provide 16–24 hours of energy storage and can be fully charged within eight hours, aligning with daily solar surplus generation windows. This positions the technology as a key enabler for round-the-clock renewable energy (RTC) and grid reliability.
Meine Electric is currently the only player in the APAC region with a proven iron-air technology stack, with four patents granted and seven international patents filed, and chemistry performance validated against global benchmarks.
Commenting on the funding, Priyansh Mohan, Co-Founder and CEO, Meine Electric, said, “India will win the energy transition when clean power becomes dispatchable, not intermittent. Over the last three years, we have focused on making iron-air chemistry stable and repeatable. We are now proving its readiness for grid-scale and commercial & industrial applications.”
Alexander Hogeveen Rutter, Third Derivative, said long-duration energy storage will become critical as renewable penetration exceeds 50%, adding that solutions like Meine Electric’s will play an essential role in replacing diesel generators and supporting renewable-heavy grids.
Gowri Shankar Nagarajan, Associate Partner at Antler, said the company stood out for its combination of deep electrochemical research and system-level execution, positioning it as a potential globally relevant platform for renewable-first power systems.
“When we think about energy, generation usually takes centre stage – but true energy security demands storage. We’re all well aware how rapidly the world order is shifting and energy will become the single most powerful asset for any economy in the future. Thrilled to be part of Meine’s journey as they become critical enablers of renewable-heavy power grids,” said Aishwarya Malhi and Vikas Kumar, Co-founders at Rebalance.
Meine Electric currently operates from a 5,000-sq-ft facility in Chennai, which is being upgraded for pilot production. The founding team brings over 75 years of combined experience and has spent the past three years refining the core iron-air chemistry platform.
Looking ahead, the company plans to deploy multi-kilowatt grid-connected prototypes, followed by larger pilot installations, with the goal of delivering turnkey, containerised iron-air battery systems by 2027. Part of the funding will also support team expansion, R&D infrastructure, and partnerships with Independent Power Producers (IPPs) and energy-intensive C&I customers for pilot adoption.
